Swati Kumari is a visual practitioner based in Ghaziabad, India. She has completed her BFA from College of Art and her MA in Visual Arts from Ambedkar University, Delhi. She comes from an agrarian family and is the first generation of a female who was born and raised in an urban landscape. She is currently working between Delhi and Ghaziabad, India.
She works across mediums such as drawings through carbon paper, soft sculptures, video, installations, letters, and books, she aims to trace the trajectory of generational tiredness in/of women’s bodies. The engagement with specific materials like carbon paper, where the drawing process creates the tension of ‘not seen but yet to be seen’ adds relevance to her work. Through her practice, she also prompts viewers to participate and activate the work by sitting, lying, resting, and conversing over it. The use of collected old sarees turned as soft sculptures, a site to take a pause and rest, invites and evokes conversation of this generational tiredness. It weaves a dynamic relationship between the presence and the absence of the tired body. Her artist books also bring forth an intuitive response to her memories, surroundings, and situations within the urban landscape.
Education
2020 Master of Visual Art, School of Culture and Creative Expressions,
Ambedkar University, Delhi
2018 Bachelor of Fine Art, College of Art, Tilak Marg, Delhi
2014 D.I.E.T. (E.T.E.), Rishabh Institute, Mayur Vihar, Delhi
Grant and Awards
2025 Generator Cooperative Art Production Fund, Experimenter, Kolkata, India
2025 Prince Claus Seed Awards, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Presentation
2026 Presenter for the Shared Ecology Artist Presentation, Delhi
2025 Peer Pollinations, sharing of art practices, initiated by Sonam Chaturvedi, Vasant Kunj, Delhi
Exhibitions and open studio
2025 On Absence, curated by Achia Anzi and co-curated by Oorja Garg, Shiva Gallery, New York, USA
2025 The Listening Biennial, Third edition, curated by Suvani Suri, at Khoj Studios, New Delhi
2025 One of the makers in the exhibition, please touch gently (zines, comics, ephemera) curated by aqui Thami, Bharath Murthy, himanshu s, with curatorial advisor Akansha Rastogi at KNMA, New Delhi
2025 To-gather at the South Asian Playground, collaboration between first draft, We Friends of Toto, Ghartera, Kaalo.101, Studio Kayamai, Studio 6/6 at Mool, Delhi
2025 Between Books, presented by Klara Paterok, at Kunsthalle Düsseldorf Art Book Fair, Germany
2025 Peers Peers Continuum: A Relay of Reciprocity, at Khoj Studios, Khirkee Extension, New Delhi
2024 Urrea.Zilarra/Gold.Silver, curated by Jasone Miranda-Bilbao, Church San Martin Obispo. Arrieta. Bizkaia
2024 PEERS 2024, Open Studio, at Khoj Studios, Khirkee Extension, New Delhi
2024 Thresholds of Becoming, curated by V. Divakar, Conflictorium - Museum of Conflict, Ahmedabad, Gujarat
2024 ‘Book Show I’ organized by Priyesh Gothwal, Jangpura, Delhi
2023 Sweat at Ease, Open Studio, Jangpura, Delhi
2023 Porous Altas, Open House, Panchsheel Vihar, Delhi
2021 A Dip In Immortality curated by Charulata Mukherjee, Gallery Onkaf, Delhi
2020 Un-dure at SCCE (Online exhibition), Ambedkar University, Delhi
2019 Pubic Art at SCCE, Ambedkar University, Delhi
2019 Open Art Event, Mandi House, Delhi
2018 Chota Dunk Bada Khatra at SCCE, Ambedkar University, Delhi
2017 All India Women Art Exhibition, Chandigarh, Punjab
2018-15 Annual Exhibition, College of Art, Tilak Marg, Delhi
Workshops, Residency, and Publications
2025 Respondent in ALWAYS IS HAVING BEEN, a month-long engagement with Hannah Arendt's political theories and poems led by Priyesh Gothwal at Goethe-Institut, New Delhi
2024 Residents at Khoj Peers Residency at Khoj Studios, New Delhi
2024 Participating in ‘Into the Midst’ a workshop facilitated by
CAMP at Sarai, Delhi
2023 Conducted the workshop 'Hide and Stir' as part of the Methods Workshop Series at KNMA
2023 Contributed illustrations in issue 144 of Sandarbh, a bimonthly magazine for school teachers on science and education published by Eklavya
2022 Participated in Practicing Public Art, Exploring tools for site- specific dialogues, a five-week-long workshop facilitated by Sanchayan Ghosh, presented by FICA, organized in collaboration with Serendipity Arts
2022 Attended and Participated in Chapter 1 | Feminist Storytelling, A set of seminars, workshops, lectures, and critiques by Ana Vujanović & Marta Popivoda as part of Home Workshop Programme 2021, Ashkal Alwan, Beirut, Lebanon
2022 Contributed to Restricted Fixation #7 and #8 issue of a zine initiative by artist Renuka Rajiv
2022 Participated in Working from Memory, PhotoSouthAsia Workshop Series, A workshop on narrative building by bookmaking by Chandan Gomes, supported by the MurthyNAYAK Foundation
2021 Participated in ‘In defense of digressions’, A seminar on second- hand cinema practices by Carine Doumit and Nour Ouayda as part of Home Workshop Programme 2021, Ashkal Alwan, Lebanon
2021 Learnt weaving on handloom as a trainee at Weavers' Service Center, Delhi
2020 Attended a two-month-long online course,
Exploring Nuances in Filmmaking with R. V. Ramani
2020 Art In-Betweeners an open call by CONA Foundation, A month- long program packed with online sessions of listening, thinking, and mentoring discussions with the team and participants.
Articles
2026 How to Show the Disappeared written by Seph Rodney
Work Experience
2021-25 Assistant Curator, Visual Arts, KNMA, Saket, Delhi
2025 Visiting Faculty in Sushant University, Gurugram, Haryana
2020-21 Internship under FAQ art in Dhoomimal Gallery, Connaught Place, Delhi
2019-21 Intern & Programme Co-ordinator, Artist Studio RWS, Model Town, Delhi