'Nowness in Time,' by Trishla Jain

Ink and Watercolour on Linen,
24 x 36 inches (each), 2022

'The line moves from a dot to a grid. The grid expands into patterns of structure that pause, create and slowly disperse into formlessness that celebrates control and freedom, the breath, the mind and the space in between. All of this takes place in the now, in the present, in the contemporary.'

Time moves in the form of constant nowness in Trishla Jain's work. The two series, 'Yantra' and 'Tantra' that create and expand Jain's first solo exhibition at Akara Contemporary may initially stand starkly apart from each other. But, on slow immersion through time spent with each painting, the dots and dashes configure themselves differently across canvases to create new compositions.

In 'Nowness in Time,' Jain presents her ‘Yantra’ and ‘Tantra’ series of work, which she has been creating since 2020. Both series converse with each other yet take on individual identities of control and letting go, of pattern and abstraction, of awareness and transcendence.

Gold ink and watercolour on canvas, 60 x 60 inches, 2022

'Mind dissolves into heart.
Heart dissolves into space,
Body becomes a vibrating field.
Pulsing between fullness
and emptiness.
-- Yukti Verses 3, Bhairava Tantra

​Gold ink and watercolour on linen, 24 x 24 inches, 2022

'When you notice
an inner gateway,
enter with love,
as one coming home.'
-- Yukti Verses 13, Bhairava Tantra

Jain akins these works to the principle of yin and yang, where ‘Yantra’ and ‘Tantra’ “behave as a pair of equal opposites - the inhale and exhale - that balance and complement each other.

Ink and watercolour on canvas, 30 x 30 inches, 2022

Above, below, to all sides, within
the elements of the universe
are engaged in their ceremony
of delight.
-- Yukti Verses 34, Bhairava Tantra

'In the village, a sage should go about like a bee, which, not harming flower, colour or scent, flies off with the nectar.'
-- Dhammapada
​

Gold Ink and Watercolour on Canvas, 60 x 60 inches, 2023

'Find the harmonies
emanating from
the circulation
of life energies.'
-- Yukti Verses 7, Bhairava Tantra

'Nowness in Time' exhibition at Akara Contemporary, Mumbai​
August 10 - September 18, 2023