ALLAN GANDHI

Noted for the shifting expressions and quiet strangeness of his subjects, Gandhi begins to paint with the intention of surprising himself with the ideas presented at the final stage. The resulting elements, therefore, should not be understood as the themes that surround his creations so much as the feeling of certainty that comes from working on paintings he takes pride in and that feel right to the current moment.

In Room Temperature, the artist is particularly moved by the materiality of painting. This refers to the technical implications of the craft itself, unpacked in works which can feel incredibly material, such as in The Fight (2026, all works from this year), fluid as in the practice of watercolor exemplified by Leather Gloves or even intentionally satirical as in the drawing-like After sex. But it is also echoed in the intention of the artist to defy a single reading of the artworks, proposing instead the freedom of ambivalence. And so, the characters that populate the images created by Gandhi are at once familiar and absurd, confronting the viewer through their innate peculiarity. Although often male-like, they do not necessarily imply a gaze. They are, more simply, the fruit of Gandhi’s enduring quest to conjure characters that attract yet alarm. Heads might disappear into smoke, or limbs might stretch to surreal proportions, as in The Hypnotized, in no pre-set condition. In a multilayered painting symbolically titled Self-portrait in My Forehead, the artist perhaps mockingly responds to the effort to frame one’s creative output.

Significantly, Gandhi views his practice as a pictorial diary of life, responding to experiences, lived or felt, and interpreting them through images. By choosing to paint such moments, the artist makes a (conscious) decision to live with these emotions, however troublesome they might be to the viewer or himself. In placing the artworks together for this exhibition, the artist recalls the sensation of entering a space for the first time and the insecurities that surround these early pre-assumptions, allegedly reading the room. But what conclusion can be drawn about a body of work that brings forward subjects that might be dressed in uniform like in Rose-grey napkin, adorned with hats or gloves like in O vilão, or almost naked like in My bed? Hence, the title chosen for the show brings forward an essential doubt on the thermic sensation of its images, but most importantly an awareness of interrelationships that circulate beyond them.

Language and humor are further elements that inform the artist’s practice. Gandhi chases thought-provoking ideas that trigger sensations of amusement or eschew objectivity, as in Oysters Bouquet. What becomes evident is that this intuition, as Allan Gandhi describes, is the moving force behind his decisions painted on canvas, cardboard, or linen without any preceding sketch or experimentation. Beyond the studio, the artist draws inspiration from artists such as Marlene Dumas, Miriam Cahn, Edvard Munch, and R.B. Kitaj, among other figures who motivate his quest for surprise. By testing the limits of the material or the stability of his characters, the artist alludes to upcoming pages of his ever-growing diary.

Courtesy Mendes Wood DM.