Original Shadows exhibits contemporary works of printmaking

Team L&M

If you are a fan of the art of printmaking, which over the years has been developed as a tool for mass communication and reproduction, visit Art Incept at Southpoint Mall in Gurugram.

The gallery is holding an exhibition of print works by 14 contemporary artists who have reimagined, reflected and redefined the timeless art of printmaking. Titled Original Shadows: Contemporary Expressions Across Mediums of Printmaking, the show began on July 16, and will remain on till August 30. So, you have plenty of time to plan and visit.

From early manuscripts and textiles to books and posters, printmaking has evolved into a deeply expressive and personal medium. This exhibition brings together a range of emerging practitioners working across techniques — from etchings and woodcuts to lithographs, Serigraphy, and hybrid processes that push the boundaries of the printed image. Each work is the result of meticulous craftsmanship, a process that involves acids, resins, metal plates, wooden blocks, and hours of skilled labour. Every mark is intentional, and every layer is built with precision and patience.

In an environment where we are often drawn to speed and spectacle, printmaking stands apart. Widely acknowledged as one of the most laborious forms of art-making, it demands a unique combination of control and surrender, of technical mastery and intuitive touch.

Through a contemporary lens, the artists in Original Shadows honor these traditional techniques while exploring new ideas, pushing boundaries, and infusing the medium with bold and current expressions. We invite you to engage with the quiet intensity and tactile richness of these works and to reflect on the enduring relevance of this ancient yet ever-evolving technique.

“This show marks an important step in making me work more visible in my home city and connecting with a wider audience interested in visual storytelling and printmaking,” says participating artist Isha Sharma.

“It is a way of bringing my ongoing conversation with the past into a public space. I want to open up the private act of remembering to a larger community that may find fragments of their own stories in mine,” she adds. Her decision to exhibit in Delhi is rooted in a desire for greater visibility and to start a dialogue around personal archives, familial bonds, and collective memory through printmaking.

This show features a series of Isha’s monochrome and sepia toned prints, primarily based on “old family photographs” — portraits, traveling, and domestic interiors — all reinterpreted with delicate textures and emotional depth.

“It’s vital for printmaking artists to come together and share space, especially when the medium often feels underrepresented or misunderstood. Being in this collective dialogue unveils the care, labour, and layers that go into printmaking, and reminds me that this practice has both a strong community and a future,” says Aditi Singh Shekhawat, another participating artist.

“What draws me to printmaking is how its slow, deliberate nature aligns with the way I process things. Layered, thoughtful, and textured. The act of preparing the surface or inking isn’t just technical; it becomes a form of meditation, a way to quietly engage with ideas and emotions through repetition and touch,” adds Shekhawat.

“For ,me, printmaking is more than a medium — it’s a process of layering, erasure, and repetition,much like the act of remembering itself. It allows me to work slowly, to return to the same image over and over — altering it, preserving it, letting parts fade. It mirrors how memories behave in our minds,” says Isha.

“Printmaking has long held a space between the intimate and the democratic—rooted in tradition, yet constantly evolving through experimentation. What makes this show especially meaningful is its invitation to learn. Through simple explanations of process and historical context, Original Shadows hopes to open up printmaking to a new generation of viewers and collectors — those curious not just about what contemporary art looks like, but also about how it’s made and why it matters. In doing so, we hope to create space for deeper engagement: with the medium, with the maker, and with the enduring tension between the original and the multiple,” says Gayatri Singh, Director, Art Incept.

Participating Artists: Aditi Singh Shekhawat | Agwma Basumatari | Anupama Dey | Attri Chetan | Chhering Negi | Isha Sharma | Manish Kumar | Narendra Kumar Sain | Naveen Tungana | Nisha Dhinwa | Prashant Phirangi | Raja Boro | Tushar Sahay | Yogesh Kumar