Shreya Mehta, an award-winning New York based artist who explores issues of identity, gender, power and spirituality in a variety of mediums and styles, has launched ‘Immersion’, a Virtual Art Gallery experience for collectors and art lovers. The invite-only online event enables them to explore and purchase artworks remotely in a curated digital space.
 

Among other works, Immersion features a guided tour of Shreya’s most recent series “Traces,” which will feature drawings influenced by photography and memory.

“Unlike other platforms that rely on outdated iterations of basic slideshow technology, Immersion invites collectors to interact with three-dimensional spaces that can be easily accessed by computer, mobile phone, or VR device,” says Shreya. 
 

Born in India, trained in Belgium, and now based in New York, Mehta’s art has been exhibited across the globe, from the New York Indian consulate,
to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Shreya was the first Indian woman accepted into the Royal Academy of Art in Belgium, where she graduated with the prestigious, V.R.I.K.A award.

Palanpur Online interacted with the artist over email to learn more about this unique opportunity. 

Palanpur Online:  How did you come to this idea of a 4-D gallery?

Shreya Mehta: During the past 3 months, I have not stepped out of my home in New York.  It has given me time to think and work on my new collection Traces, which is a re-creation of unforgettable moments from around the world. I've been sifting through photos from my years of travel during quarantine, vividly remembering the moments and the emotions they evoked. As we dig into our memory, we may not remember its exact imagery or color, but we have traces of it in black and white. The moments I’ve drawn have changed my life and the sites depicted are incredibly important to me. In each work, I strive to catch moment of stillness and light in each drawing.

Traditionally, I show my work in galleries and art fairs. Since the pandemic has postponed or cancelled these venues and events, I wanted to share my new collection on a new platform. and that’s why I created this virtual gallery.

PO:  What is in this gallery?  What is unique about it?

SM:  This is where art and technology meet.  The gallery has three “rooms” which feature my series “Traces, Liquid Tapestries, Identity, and Karma.” All of the work on view invites us to ask the question “what is our identity”?

PO:   How is this experience different from an online gallery on a website?

SM:  A virtual gallery, allows the visitor to maneuver independently through each room. To offer a more human experience, each artwork has an audio guide, in my words, to share the artists perspective.  In a 3-D, digital rendering of an exhibition, you can virtually maneuver through a gallery and hear the audio notes. In a. 4-D rendering, you can be IN the space through the use of a virtual headset. Immersion to this extent allows a viewer to almost experience being in a new world.
 

The 4-D experience is an IMMERSIVE experience: interactive sounds, 3D objects, images and videos in your virtual space. You can also chat and communicate with other visitors while they are in the gallery with you. 

PO:  How can an art lover visit IMMERSION?

SM:  The gallery will currently be accessible on a by-appointment basis.  There are 30 min guided tours, where I will you an overview of the virtual space via Zoom.  Once you receive the overview, you get a link to explore it further on your own. All you need is an internet connection and a device (laptop, iPad or smartphone).

For further details please email: artwork@artshreya.com