By Krisha Chhabra ‘26, Arts and Entertainment Staff Writer

In October, the David Teiger Art gallery was filled with mystical photographs depicting people dressed as Hindu gods. Manjari Sharma, the artist, designed this art to provide insight on an Indian temple experience. Sharma believes art can show the essence of a culture, and has hosted several Zoom meetings with the Middle and Upper School art classes to discuss how her work strives to accomplish this. The collection, named Darshan, is a work in progress, and Sharma wants to continue adding more pieces in the future. Each detail in these photographs was carefully hand-crafted: the sets, the headpieces, the jewelry, and the sewing outfits the models  wore.

Manjari Sharma’s work has been displayed in many private collections, as well as the Museum of Fine Arts and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She was awarded first place for The CENTER’s Curator’s Choice Award in 2014 and was an honorable mention for the Santa Fe Prize in 2012. Sharma’s work is based heavily on her background, specifically the religious devotion she would see on the streets as a child. Sharma was born and raised in Mumbai, India and moved to the United States when she was 21 years old. Currently, she lives in Southern California but feels both American and Indian, having spent equal time in both areas and appreciating both cultures. 

In 2011, Sharma created a website in which she explained her motivation behind her collection: “Growing up in India, I saw spiritual paintings and sculptures of Hindu deities everywhere, in temples and people’s homes, but never in a photograph. Darshan is unique and innovative because my mission is to prove that a carefully created photograph can evoke a similar spiritual response.” When living in an area filled with a culture, one develops a connection to it that can’t be found in textbooks. Manjari Sharma’s art aims to recreate this thoughtful feeling, which she elaborates on by saying, “What Darshan really bridges is that whether it’s spiritually or creating a complex photograph, they both need practice, faith and devotion…It takes everything I can give in terms of time, organization and research”. 

When setting up the scenes and taking photos, Sharma focuses on her identity and multiculturalism, remarking that “It’s an honor to preserve my heritage and culture through the medium of photography.” Both her Indian and American lifestyle will hold a place in her heart and help inspire new artwork. India is a very connective culture that brings many diverse groups of people together, and Manjari Sharma’s collection shows the culture in a more authentic light by creating experiences similar to those of people living in India. Art can bring people together and help communicate the messages that words may fail to convey.