Manish Nai

Manish Nai uses found objects and ephemera to create architectural sculptures. His artworks often take on basic geometric forms such as cubes, circles, and columns, and are constructed from recycled materials including jute, concrete, newspaper, and cardboard. By producing abstract, minimalist sculptures like Untitled (2019), Nai turns cheap, common materials into complex, firmly bound entities ripe for aesthetic consideration. The artist’s choice of medium also references the materials’ ranking within the artistic community, and reflects the Indian caste system. Nai grew up in a family of jute traders, and his artworks demonstrate his deep knowledge of the material as well as his awareness of India’s cultural history, where jute was used as a material to create clothing for individuals of lower classes. Nai’s work has been exhibited at the Shanghai Biennale and Kochi-Muziris Biennale.