Known Bodies, Unknown Futures

An invasive weed that chokes waterways became the unexpected material for transformation. Likitha R Jain sees in water hyacinth not a problem, but a possibility.

Artists

Likitha R Jain (The Bengaluru School of Visual Arts, Bengaluru)

Medium

Water hyacinth fibers, paper mache on wall, mix media

Venue

Vallabhdas Kanji Limited (VKL) Warehouse, Mattancherry, Fort Kochi, Kerala

Timings

10AM to 6PM (Mon to Sunday)

Till March 31st, 2026

About

Known Bodies, Unknown Futures emerges from a practice rooted in slow, layered making. Likitha works with fragments—torn newspaper images, found objects, discarded materials—as starting points for rearrangement and reimagining.

A major shift occurred when she began working with water hyacinth: invasive, fibrous, resilient. The weed aligned perfectly with her experiments in paper pulp. Now, forms emerge through improvisation and gentle movement, reflecting interests in material ecology and post-humanist thinking.

Sculpture becomes a site of responsiveness and transformation—much like the weed itself.

Kochi Biennale 2025