One of the most acclaimed artists of his generation, NS Harsha draws on a broad spectrum of Indian painting traditions and popular arts, as well as the Western canon, to create quietly philosophical works that reflect on structures, borders and barriers as a series of ever-shifting concepts. Central to his work is a gentle questioning of our place within the known and unknown worlds, the strength of our grip on the tangible and, conversely, the force with which the intangible exerts a hold over us. Storytelling endures at the heart of Harsha’s practice, yet linear narrative remains elusive in exquisitely rendered new paintings such as May, 2020, which was painted over one month last year and features one of the most enduring images of the current Covid pandemic – a blue surgical glove. The blue gloved hand reaches into a blue space, in search of something that remains tantalisingly out of reach and out of view.

Born in 1969, NS Harsha lives and works in Mysore, India. Solo exhibitions and projects have taken place at international venues including Glynn Vivian Art Gallery, Swansea (2018); Mori Art Museum, Tokyo (2017); the Dallas Museum of Art (2015–2016); DAAD, as part of the DAAD Artists-in-Berlin Program (2012–2013); INIVA, London (2009); and at Maison Hermes Tokyo (2008). Harsha’s work has featured in group exhibitions including the 21st Biennale of Sydney (2018); the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, India (2014); Moscow Biennial of Contemporary Art (2013); Dojima Biennial, Osaka (2013); Adelaide International Biennial (2012); Asian Art Museum, San Francisco (2012); the Yokohama Triennial (2011) and the Bienal de Sao Paulo (2010). He was also a participant in the major touring exhibition Indian Highway, which was staged at the Serpentine Gallery, London (2008); Astrup Fearnley Museum of Modern Art, Oslo (2009); Herning Art Museum, Denmark (2010); Musée d’Art Contemporain, Lyon (2011); MAXXI, Rome (2011–12).