Shivanjani Lal: Pani begets Pani

A set of metal bowls on a white linen carpet placed in a circle, with a brown ceramic bowl in the centre of the metal bowls.

Shivanjani Lal,
Pani begets Pani (detail), 2021 - 2022
Metal Bowls filled with Murray River water, Clay bowls filled with Ganges River water sourced Lidcombe and Homebush, Sydney, fabric, haldi (turmeric) sourced Auburn and handmade kum kum powder Albury
Photo by Jeremy Weihrauch

Pani begets Pani was the first solo exhibition by artist Shivanjani Lal. By engaging with themes of displacement, cultural connection and rituals for return, this presentation of new work navigated water as a site to account for history. In this large-scale installation of video, ceramic and paper works, Lal created a conversation around ritual and monuments.

Pani begets Pani questioned how much history does water hold? And who is allowed to tell this story?

Meet the Artist

A South Asian woman sitting on the floor in front of yellow and red artworks

Shivanjani Lal is a Fijian-Australian artist whose work uses personal grief to account for ancestral loss. Recent works have used story-telling, objects and video to account for lost histories and explore narratives of indenture and migratory histories from the Indian and Pacific oceans. Writing has become a focal point of her current research. Reading and objects guide audiences through lived and imagined narratives that attempt to decipher what is lost and the possibilities of futures.