Bharti Kher’s 18-foot tall painted bronze sculpture will grace Doris C. Freedman Plaza at the entrance to Central Park, marking the most ambitious work in her career. Works in Kher’s “Intermediaries” series, which she has been developing for five years, begin as miniature sculptures sourced by the artist from secondhand markets across India. These small clay figurines are avatars of humans, animals, and mythical beings that she repairs and reassembles into hybrid forms. For Kher’s largest work in this series, she will pay homage to and celebrate the position of the mother as a figure of empowerment, creation, and refuge, who manifests as both human and otherworldly. More than 20 heads adorn the front of the mother’s body, embodying male and female multiplicity. She is draped traditionally in a sari, and the artist has elaborated a fantastical hairstyle with a multi-lobed bun and three long braids. Kher’s depiction creates an image of a powerful goddess with her multicultural and diverse children. She embodies the possibility for an interconnected and a shared sense of belonging.
Bharti Kher: Ancestor is curated by Public Art Fund Curator Daniel S. Palmer.