Sankesh Surana Atelier presents a sacred art series
विश्वं विष्णुः
Viśvaṃ Viṣṇuḥ
Viśvaṃ — the all. Viṣṇuḥ — that which pervades.
One truth, many forms.
The origin
A client asked, almost in passing: have you ever been to Tirupati? Sankesh Surana had not. She insisted, and something clicked — he went. What he found there was not a sight so much as an atmosphere: a stillness, a charge in the air he could not put a name to.
The question he brought home was simpler, and harder.
How do you translate that into design?
In his words
The Lord is complete in Himself, yet He delights in one thing — the loving gaze of His devotee.
The research
Before a line was drawn, three scholars — each holding a doctorate in the field — were brought in. Not to decide how the work should look, but how it should be reasoned: where each element belongs, and why it belongs there.
Every form is placed for a reason that can be traced.
The work
They will be told one at a time. For now — a glimpse.
The seven hills
The rings behind the head are not a halo in the ordinary sense. They are Śeṣācala — the seven hills of Tirumala, which are Śeṣa himself in the form of a mountain. In Vaikuṇṭha the Lord rests on the serpent; at Tirumala he rests on the hill that is the serpent.
The mark on the brow
The channel of rubies down the centre is Lakṣmī. The white on either side of it is not decoration but the feet of Viṣṇu. What appears to be a single mark is three presences, held in one line.
The lotus at the base
From the navel of Viṣṇu grows the lotus, and from the lotus, Brahmā. The base carries that lotus. Brahmā is never shown — no four faces, no figure — and is present all the same. Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Maheśa: all three can be found in this work without one of them being depicted.
The seven doors
Seven doors stand between the visitor and the sanctum, and each is a barrier between you and God. You pass through them leaving something behind. You are leaving your ego. You are leaving your world, to enter the Lord’s world.
Eight forms of Lakṣmī. Nine planets, witnessing a wedding — and the loan that paid for it. A mark of camphor on the chin, and the story of how it got there. Those are told at the opening.
The front is immediate — it meets you. The reverse asks you to walk: a realm above, seven hills below, geometry, abundance, order. Viśvaṃ Viṣṇuḥ was created to be experienced from every direction, which is the one thing a photograph cannot give you.
It is why there is an opening at all.
The opening
The first work of ANANTA will be shown at the studio on Monday, 21 September, between 4:30 and 7:30 in the evening. Attendance is by invitation, and the room is small.
Leave your details and the studio will be in touch.
एकं सद् विप्रा बहुधा वदन्ति
“The One Reality, spoken of in many ways.” — Ṛg Veda 1.164.46
