Beneath the Surface: Unearth show, IndianExpress.com

Using various types of graphite drawing pencils of different thickness and hardness, Mumbai-based artist Hemali Bhuta rubbed them on different kinds of sandpaper, to create numerous shades in nine frames, which is on display at Exhibit 320. This was her attempt at exploring what goes under the ground and our shared relationship with what lies beneath our feet. "I am trying to understand different structures and the friction existing between them, that is equivalent to a dialogue. Are we aware of our geology and the relationship we share with it? Graphite is a kind of coal. What is coal then, how is it formed, and how do these relationships exist, are the questions I have tried to explore through this artwork," she says.