Shilo Shiv Suleman – eShe

Starting today, a ‘fiery’ art exhibition is set to take place in New Delhi, featuring renowned women artists from across South Asia. Titled Art of Liberation, the exhibition “celebrates fire as a liberatory force – one that burns through fear, oppression, and silence to illuminate paths of resistance and rebirth.”

Presented by award-winning artist Shilo Shiv Suleman, curatorial advisor Myna Mukherjee, and co-host Tara Lal, the exhibition marks the official launch of Suleman’s Fearless Foundation for the Arts in Delhi.

Artists include Ahsana Angona from Bangladesh, Krisha Joshi from Nepal, Luluwa Lokhandwala from Pakistan, Vicky Shahjehan from Sri Lanka, Chuu Nyu Wein from Myanmar, Zahra Khodadadi from Afghanistan, and Negin Rezaie from Iran, besides Suleman herself from India.

Themes range from the youth-led movements in Nepal and the Aragalaya movement in Sri Lanka, to resistance against the Shia genocide in Pakistan. The show – which is on until 21 October 2025 – also features performances and words by Aamir Aziz, Shruti Vishwanathan, Mahi G, and Delhi Sultanate.

Suleman, who is the founder and creative director of the Fearless Foundation, has led public art interventions in 10 countries with underrepresented communities and is a globally recognized name in feminist and activist art.

Her work weaves history, culture, gender, environment and technology through installation, sculpture, paintings, wearables and public art. An author, columnist and public speaker, her artworks have been acquired internationally by museums, corporations and private collections.

eShe asked her about this latest exhibition.

What was the inspiration behind the collection and how did you go about the curation process?

The inspiration behind Art of Liberation came from the idea of fire – both as a symbol and a force. Fire can destroy, but it also has the power to renew and regenerate. For me, it became a metaphor for the times we live in, where across South Asia and the world we are witnessing people-led movements rising against injustice. Through Fearless, we wanted to explore this transformative energy.

In curating the exhibition, we brought together artists from across South Asia. Each of their works reflects movements within their own regions and together, they form a collective voice of liberation.

We’ve also been intentional about the spaces we chose – from Travancore Palace in Delhi to the Asia Society Museum in New York – to assert that political and community-led art belongs in these institutional contexts just as much as any other form of artistic expression.

Why is fearlessness such an important element of art in today’s South Asia?

Because to make art here – art that tells the truth – is already a fearless act. In today’s South Asia, artists are working against censorship, surveillance and silencing. But fearlessness isn’t about never being afraid; it’s about creating despite fear, about painting hope into the cracks of our realities.

When I first began signing my murals Fearless, it was a way of speaking that courage into being, for myself and for others. And that’s what I see across the region now: an army of artists using colour and song as resistance, matching the far right’s machinery of hate with our own movements of love, joy and reclaimed imagination. Fearlessness is our shared language of survival and solidarity.

Which piece in the collection touched you the most at a personal level?

The piece that touched me most is Vicky Shahjehan’s work from Sri Lanka’s Aragalaya where she turns henna into fire, transforming an ancient symbol of beauty and celebration into one of resistance.

To me, that act feels like the very heart of what Fearless stands for: reclaiming what is intimate and feminine and turning it into power. Vicky’s work makes Sri Lanka itself a flame, burning through nights of crisis, carried by the courage of her people. It speaks to how art can witness, archive and demand all at once.

And personally, it resonates with how Fearless began – as a small act of reclamation on the streets, painting fearlessness into existence one wall at a time, until it grew into a collective movement of imagination and resistance.

What are the challenges that feminist artists face even in the 21st century?

Feminist artists still face the challenge of visibility, of being seen and heard in systems that often render their work “too political”, “too emotional”, or “too disruptive”. Even today, our stories are confined to the margins while the canon remains guarded by patriarchy and privilege.

But what gives me hope is that beyond those gates, on the streets, in protests, in collectives, feminist art is flourishing. It is joyful, communal and deeply political. The challenge, then, is not only to make this art but to insist that it belongs in every space of cultural memory and imagination.

How does intersectionality play a role in your curatorial themes at Fearless? 

Intersectionality is central to everything we do at Fearless. The movement itself was never meant to be confined to one identity, one geography, or one struggle. We work with artists from across South Asia – India, Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Myanmar and Iran – each bringing a deeply personal yet interconnected perspective on liberation.

What unites them is the understanding that our struggles and our freedoms are intertwined. Whether it’s gender, caste, sexuality or political displacement, each layer of identity informs the other.

Through our exhibitions and networks, we try to create a space where these intersections are not just acknowledged but celebrated, where artists can speak across borders, across wounds, and across histories to imagine a more inclusive and loving world.

Art of Liberation is on display from 16 to 21 October 2025 at Travancore Palace, New Delhi