Jagannath Panda comes home
The artist returns to Bhubaneswar for his first exhibition in his hometown, bringing three decades of practice into dialogue with memory, ecology and place
With ‘The Long Now of Us’, artist Jagannath Panda brings his work to his hometown of Bhubaneswar for the first time. Curated by Sibdas Sengupta, the exhibition situates his three-decade career within the cultural and geographic landscape that shaped his early sensibilities. By weaving together mixed-media paintings, drawings and large-scale sculptural installations, it explores a “long now” in which history, memory and contemporary developments exist in a state of constant, meaningful recurrence.
Sengupta says the genesis of the exhibition is rooted in a dialogue that has spanned several years, evolving far beyond a standard gallery presentation. “In conceptualising the show, we were deeply conscious of the anticipation surrounding his return. Our primary challenge was to ensure the exhibition responded to this ‘wait’ with intellectual and visceral efficacy. This is not merely another exhibition in the vein of his presentations in Delhi, Mumbai or internationally; rather, it is designed as a foundational chapter for contemporary art in the region. We conceived this show to act as a catalyst for Odisha’s forthcoming thinkers, establishing a new pedagogical and aesthetic benchmark for the local cultural ecology.”
(L-R) Artist Jagannath Panda with curator Sibdas Sengupta.
Asked what took him so long to showcase his work in Bhubaneswar, Panda says, “For a long time, I felt that simply coming back with work was not enough. I needed to return with a sensibility that had evolved — one that could give voice to my deeper concerns. The distance helped me understand where I came from, not as nostalgia, but as a way of thinking through my visual language and the questions that continue to shape me.”
To him, showing this body of work in Bhubaneswar feels like placing a long conversation back in the city where he grew up — where it all began. “It is personal, yes, but it is also a form of listening and reimagining. I am not only presenting the work here; I want to build a new conversation around what art means for us — in this place, at this time.”
Panda’s practice has evolved over three decades. However, he says the most significant change cannot be seen merely in terms of style or representation, but in a deeper ethical and empathetic understanding — and in his awareness of the interdependence between memory and material. “Earlier, I was primarily concerned with making images. Over time, I became more attentive to how materials and images carry memory, loss and responsibility. My work has moved from the joy of making something to an inquiry into possibility — from form to consequence. The materials have become more fragile, more layered, more conflicted — much like the world we inhabit. I no longer seek resolution. I allow contradictions to remain visible. That shift — from control to acceptance — feels like the real evolution in my practice.”
‘F-Faith’. Acrylic, Fabric, Paper Cutout, Fabric, Gold Leaf, Glue on Paper, 2025.
Collage plays a central role in Panda’s oeuvre and is an important part of this show. To him, it reflects how we live. “We are made of fragments — histories, myths, personal memories, borrowed images and sometimes broken structures. Nothing arrives whole. For me, collage is not simply about assembling parts, but about acknowledging plurality and the simultaneity of time. Different moments exist together. The ancient and the contemporary overlap. The personal and the political refuse separation.”
Collage also allows him to work honestly, intuitively and playfully. “It accepts fracture as a condition, and from that fracture opens the possibility of multiple meanings.”
The chariot is another vital thread in the present show. Sengupta says they selected works that reimagine this traditional structure, transforming it from a historical symbol into a potent signifier of contemporary ecological consciousness. “By centring Odisha as a primary context, the selection provides a new lens through which to interrogate global contemporary questions — historical amnesia, myth-making processes and ecological crisis — as zones of contemplation for both our precarious present and our speculative future.”
Over the years, ecology and environmental concerns have recurred in his work. Panda says ecology is not merely a subject; it is our condition of living, shaping how we move, think, breathe and value our shared future. Living in Gurgaon only deepened this awareness. “On one side stand the ancient Aravalli hills, carrying geological time. On the other side is a rapidly expanding city driven by speed and ambition. Standing between these two realities made me conscious of how fragile our balance is. My work emerges from this tension — between care and consumption — and from the question of how we choose to live with the world around us.”
The exhibition brings together works across mediums, showcasing the diversity of his practice. Asked how he decides what form an idea takes, Panda says, “I see ideas as spontaneous and intuitive. They arrive with their own rhythm, scale and material desire. I do not force them into a particular medium; I try to listen and respond. Some ideas are inward and reflective, and they settle into drawing, collage or painting. Others carry physical weight and need to become sculpture or installation. Over time, I have understood that form is not a decision but a response.”
And he responds, remaining attentive to what each idea asks to become.
