Facilitated by Niroj Satpathy

Part of Methods Series

Assemblage sculptures and installations are a visual art form that involves assembling various materials, often found and discarded, to create three-dimensional artworks. Pablo Picasso, one of the most influential artists of the twentieth century, also worked in this medium (Still Life with Chair Caning, 1911-12), alongside other artists, including Dadaists like Marcel Duchamp (Fountain, 1917). This art form engages our instincts by aligning it with a pragmatic approach as we recontextualise the identity of the objects while maintaining aesthetic value. Artists have used it to challenge traditional notions of beauty for decades. Many artists, like Niroj Sathpaty, employ this practice to embrace sustainable methods in art while reflecting on the relationship between humans and their environment.

What to expect from the workshop:

The workshop will encourage the participants to create sculptures using discarded objects and waste material, fostering a new way to look at materials and the stories they hold. It aims to introduce participants to the practice of assemblage in contemporary art. The artist will guide participants through the art-making process using tools and techniques central to his artistic approach. The workshop aims to provide participants with an understanding of how to transform waste into art, a sustainable enhancement to their artistic endeavours, while also contributing to waste reduction in the environment. It will facilitate hands-on experimentation and collaborative art-making.

Who can join:

Anybody with basic understanding and interest for art and design can join the workshop. There is no need to have any formal sculpting skills.

Suggestion:

We recommend that participants bring found and discarded objects, for example, old fabric, empty bottles or cans, broken cups, paper, buttons, and natural elements like twigs, fallen leaves, shells and stones, etc. Regardless, art materials shall be provided in the workshop.

About the artist:

Niroj employs a diverse range of mediums, such as drawing, painting, installation, sculpture, photography, digital art, and video documentation, to create pieces that explore themes such as land, community, politics, ecology, and relationships within our materialistic society. Art-making for him is a reflection of the city and its waste.

He served as a night supervisor at the MCD Solid Waste Management Department, which provided him with a unique opportunity to gain insights into the city's waste management system. During this time, he documented his observations of the environment in diaries, photographs, and other documents, and became a collector and listener of the stories and mythologies that surrounded him, while also devoting time to understanding the bureaucracy that governs waste management in the city.

Today, waste management and sustainability are crucial issues that require attention and action, and through his art, Niroj aims to inspire others to contemplate their relationship with waste, waste disposal, and the environment. The artist believes that his art practice has the potential to bring about a positive change in the way people perceive waste and its management.

Niroj Satpathy has a BFA in Painting from BK Art College of Fine Arts, Bhubaneswar (2006) and an MFA in Painting and Visual Arts from Utkal University of Culture, Bhubaneswar (2009). Recent exhibitions include Dhalav, a solo exhibition at Anant Art Gallery, Delhi (2023); Hawa Main Baat community project at Bhalswa, Nandanagri New Delhi (2024); Could be Urbanism with Naveen Mahantesh and WALA, at Khoj (2018); Hangar for the Passerby, at Kiran Nadar Museum of Art (2017). He has also taken part in several public art projects like the recent Arthshila Residency Project in Siwan, Bihar (2025) and Bhubaneswar

Art Trail (2018); Performances like Harkat (2012) at CSDS and Kala Pani (2015 & 2017). Much of his art practice engages collaborative work and community projects