Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran: Disrupting Ceramics with Smoke, Iconoclasm, and Artistic Innovation
Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran: Pushing boundaries with ancient and contemporary influences, Sri Lankan-born artist Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran is making waves in the art world His fusion of traditional deities, pop-culture, and queer perspectives has positioned him as a rising star in contemporary art
Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran strikes a pose, pouting and scowling gently, dressed in an eye-catching floral shirt, pink trousers, and lilac flatform Crocs as he is photographed at the Tramway arts venue in Glasgow. The 35-year-old Sri Lanka-born artist has curated a flamboyant exhibition, featuring sought-after ceramic and brass sculptures that blend ancient deities, pop-culture references, and queer sensibilities. The cavernous space of the former tram depot houses the dramatic collection, including a towering mud-and-straw sculpture adorned with neon LED lighting and a makeshift "temple" structure with a fountain. The exhibit is a visual spectacle and sensory experience, with added theatricality from a smoke machine, offering an exuberant exploration of global mythologies and cultural identities.
"I've never desired to create art that only speaks to those well-versed in art," stated Nithiyendran, seated with legs crossed and Crocs off, on a sofa in the Tramway cafe, his long curly hair gathered in a top knot. "I'm not drawn to hardcore abstraction or highly conceptual art. Nor am I interested in photorealistic painting. I appreciate complex ideas, but much art can become self-referential, and I find that incredibly dull."
Nithiyendran fuses religious iconography with pop culture references in his sculptures.
Christian Capuro
Nithiyendran is focused on engaging diverse audiences and drawing inspiration from non-Western narratives, particularly those of South Asia. Born in Colombo, Sri Lanka, he moved to Australia at the age of 1 with his parents. His Tamil heritage is evident in his playful, idol-inspired, part-animal, part-human forms.
A star in his ascendency
A bronze sculpture prominently positioned in the Tramway space, for instance, is described by Nithiyendran as a "kind of guardian, warrior, destroyer, protector all at once." It both references ancient Buddhist and Hindu imagery of seated figures and conglomerates contemporary references. "Thats a banana; thats Hello Kitty; these are dragon masks from a Halloween shop," said Nithiyendran, pointing to the different elements he cast using the traditional lost-wax technique before welding them together to combine the divine with the "detritus of everyday life", and the momentous with "banality and humor."
Nithiyendran is a well-known artist in his native Australia, having staged a solo exhibition at the National Gallery of Australia at a young age. His work has also been commissioned by prestigious institutions such as the Art Gallery of New South Wales and Queenslands HOTA museum, where his impressive 6-meter-tall public sculpture "Double-faced avatar with blue figure" stands at the entrance.
"Idols of Mud and Water" marks Nithiyendran's first institutional solo exhibition in Europe, but his global reputation is on the rise. Represented by Sullivan+Strumpf and Jhaveri Contemporary, his bold and colorful ceramic sculptures have garnered significant interest from collectors around the world, including Australia, Europe, and China. Amrita Jhaveri of Jhaveri Contemporary praised Nithiyendran's "fabulous polychrome hybrid figures" after discovering his work at the 2018 Dhaka Art Summit in Bangladesh. In 2022, a show featuring 14 of his sculptures in Mumbai received overwhelming interest and could have sold many times over.
The artist emphasized the significance of visibility, stating, "As I grew up in Australia, artists with a similar cultural background or darker skin were noticeably absent from my art history classes."
Amrita is drawn to Nithiyendran, finding him to be a vibrant and engaging individual with a contagious laugh. Similarly, Tramways senior curator Claire Jackson is captivated by his charismatic and fun personality, expressing a desire to simply be in his presence.
as well as the citys street art and colorful architecturecapture the joy and resilience of the LGBTQ+ community in a way that feels fresh and genuinely optimistic.
Nithiyendran was named the "Artist of the Year" by GQ Australia magazine in 2022. The accompanying profile featured him posing next to his kiln in a high-fashion ensemble, including a shearling poncho and monogrammed parachute pants, along with heat-resistant safety gloves and his signature Crocs. That year, Thames & Hudson published a monograph of his work titled "Ramesh," and his recent cover shoot for international contemporary art magazine ArtReview was just as bold, with Nithiyendran donning a pink puffer jacket unzipped to almost his midriff, showcasing his bare chest.
"Quite early on in my career, I noticed that people wanted to photograph me," he said in a substantially unbuttoned shirt, even on a Scottish winter day. "I'm like, 'Yes, I'm going to wear this. I'm going to pose this way. I'm looking at the camera.' Growing up in Australia, artists from a similar cultural background, or with darker skin, were never represented in my art history classes, so I thought to myself, 'I'm going to lean into all the media opportunities because visibility is really important. Visibility can make a real impact.'"
Making room for other voices
Nithiyendran's latest exhibition packs a punch, yet also strives to be "subversive within the spectacle framework," according to the artist. "I was delving into conceptual, global, and philosophical explorations of the movements of water and earth," he explained about the overarching theme. "Most cultures have some form of flood myth woven into their creation stories."
GQÂ Australia" magazine named Nithiyendran "Artist of the Year" in 2022.
Keith Hunter's makeshift "temple" is constructed from salvaged wood, bamboo, and tarpaulin sheets, inspired by flood-responsive architecture. Inside, it displays a carefully arranged pyramid of 96 terracotta figures, adorned with gold glaze. The figures range from "amorphous mask-like forms" to elaborate designs with "arms, legs, multiple heads, and zoomorphic features." His work also includes phallic protrusions, a controversial aspect that has led to him being labelled as "the bad boy of ceramics."
"I don't view the sculptures as breaking the rules," said Nithiyendran, who studied women's and gender studies in college before pursuing art. The ceramic figures in the Tramway exhibit vividly reflect gender fluidity. "I refer to this one as my queen," Nithiyendran pointed out, indicating one of three sculptures with a more classical inspiration, influenced by Gandharan Buddhism and featuring multiple layers of glaze. "It alludes to different types of fertility figures, but with a more queer perspective."
Nithiyendran also sees his work as not "opposing a Eurocentric patriarchal model," but rather as an effort to "make space for other voices" and "create parallel and unique spaces." Jackson commented, "Stepping into the gallery space, you're fully immersed in Ramesh's world," and added that the installation process was set to the music of "a lot of 90s girl groups," and predicted that the opening night festivities would end with a karaoke session.
"It has a diva theme," Nithiyendran explained with a warm and welcoming laugh, clearly basking in the spotlight of his burgeoning success. "I come from a refugee background and grew up next to a McDonalds in a migrant suburb in Australia. So I take pride in what I have accomplished. I am happy to embrace it."
