Spanning India, East Africa and the UK, Nalini explores the connected histories of Arpita Shah, her mother and her grandmother. Bringing contemporary portraits and still lifes together with family photographs and heirloom objects, the series traces the effects of migration, distance and loss across generations. Shah’s search through family archives and visits to places connected with her maternal ancestors led to new discoveries about their lives and relationships. The title is her grandmother’s name and the Sanskrit word for lotus. Flowers recur as offerings to the women in her family: the lotus symbolises femininity, fertility and rebirth, while bougainvillea connects memories of India and East Africa. Photographs of bodies, possessions and places bring these family histories together.


Arpita Shah explains that "The lotus is a sacred flower in Hinduism, it’s been carved in Hindu temples for centuries, used in religious events, Hindu goddesses are often depicted seated on one and it’s a national symbol that is embedded in everyday life and culture in India. The lotus represents femininity, fertility and rebirth, I often reference it in my work and use its symbolism to evoke the female experiences of uprooted-ness, longing and displacement.

The lotus bud looks so distant from its origin of mud and water, floating above it as if detached but there is this strong umbilical-cord-like stem that anchors it down to its roots. From early ancient Indian texts, such as Rg-Veda, the lotus has always been associated with the womb.

There are numerous Indian paintings and scriptures of Lord Vishnu depicted sleeping in the ocean, with a lotus flower sprouting out of his navel – in Hinduism this story represents the birth of Brahma, the creator of the universe. I had this image in my mind when creating this triptych which features my mother (on the right), grandmother (on the left) and sprouting lotus in the centre image." In his WOSP review, Frank McElhinney interprets the emerging lotus as Shah’s symbolic self-portrait, extending the family grouping across three generations.