JAGANNATH PANDA (B.1970)

In his detailed mixed-media paintings, Panda combines mythology with images from Western and Indian contemporary culture, exploring the theme of globalization and the effects of rapid unchecked development on the earth. The Feral Sphere - II stands as one of Panda's most politically-charged works. The natural and the manmade collide and coalesce into a seamless apocalyptic whole. The world is transformed into a toxic, grey wasteland dotted by radioactive sites, bursts of fire, and enveloped by a wasting environment of grey smoke. A slender body of national flags is aligned in solidarity, offering little succor or hope in the face of the inevitable.

"Through his art, Jagannath Panda reconciles many of our most fundamental contradictions. The dichotomies of Nature Culture, Urban Rural, Traditional Contemporary and Figuration Abstraction find both expression and resolve within Panda's paintings [K] Reconciliation restores balance and harmony among elements, yet restoration implies that such equilibrium was missing." (Jagannath Panda: Nothing is Solid exhibition catalogue, Mumbai, India, 2007, unpaged).

Over the past decade, Panda has received significant international exposure and recognition, having participated in exhibitions with the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi (2013), Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing (2012), the Asian Art Museum, San Francisco (2012), the Herning Museum of Contemporary Art, Denmark (2010) and the Mori Art Museum, Tokyo (2008). His most recent exhibition is at Halcyon Gallery, London.