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Bay Area exhibition reimagines the Ramayana
The exhibition features more than 75 artworks and a 100-foot handwritten Sanskrit manuscript inspired by the epic.
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Staff Reporter - Wed, 01, Jul 2026
- 17:56 EDT
- 34
Exhibition Poster / Handout
Bay Area artist Pragati Sharma Mohanty opened a new exhibition at the Richmond Art Center in California that reimagines the Ramayana through contemporary visual art.
Titled ‘Daughter of the Earth’, the exhibition is the culmination of a six-year artistic journey rooted in research, storytelling and experimentation, the artists said.
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Featuring more than 75 paintings, sculptural installations, divine totems, mixed-media works and a 100-foot handwritten Sanskrit manuscript, it draws from multiple versions of the Ramayana and India's visual storytelling traditions.
Rather than illustrating the ancient epic, the exhibition explores its characters, landscapes, relationships and moral questions through immersive compositions layered with mythology, architecture, symbolism, flora, fauna and hidden narratives.
According to the artist, the exhibition reflects a shift away from screen-based storytelling toward immersive visual narratives inspired by India's artistic heritage.
"At a time when stories are increasingly consumed through screens, I turn to one of humanity's oldest traditions – visual and oral storytelling," Mohanty said in a statement.
"My work explores how ancient narratives survive, transform, and find new meaning when they are retold through contemporary artistic languages."
Central to the exhibition is Mohanty's signature style, "Maximalist-Miniaturism," which combines the precision and storytelling traditions of Indian miniature art with the abundance and visual richness of maximalism. Each work is designed to function as a complete composition from a distance while revealing intricate stories and symbolic details on closer viewing.
"Through my signature style, Maximalist-Miniaturism, I create densely layered compositions where every detail contributes to a larger story," Mohanty said.
"Influenced by Indian miniature traditions, folk art, manuscripts, architecture, and decorative practices, my paintings invite viewers into worlds that unfold slowly."
Mohanty said the Ramayana has traveled across centuries and cultures, continuously adapting through different languages, regions and artistic forms.
"My work is a continuation of that living tradition — not a recreation of the past, but a conversation between history and the present," she said.
Born in India, Mohanty studied architecture at the Government College of Architecture in Lucknow and industrial design at the National Institute of Design in Ahmedabad.
Her background in architecture informs her approach to structure, space and composition, while her practice combines painting, mixed media, digital planning and handcrafted processes.
Mohanty is also the founder of Pragati Art School, where she has spent more than two decades teaching and preserving Indian folk and traditional art practices.
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