Arushi Nayar
About Me
I am a multidisciplinary artist and educator working with performance art, video art, sculpture, everyday objects, painting, as well as writing and storytelling. My art practice is a celebration of being alive, of hard-won freedom, and of healing, strength, and the human spirit. Creating art is my way of reclaiming my life, being my truest self, and standing up for myself. Through my art, I want to hold hands with everyone who is struggling, and even if people’s eyes tear up while experiencing my performances, as they often do, I hope that the very same people also feel held and less alone. I cannot box my work into any particular medium, rather, each exhibition, performance, or body of work is a creative amalgamation of many mediums, forms, ideas, stories, and layers.

I have a bachelor’s degree in Fine Art from National Art School, Sydney, Australia; a bachelor’s degree in Mass Media and Mass Communication from Indraprastha College, Delhi University; and a DELF B1 diploma in French. I have held both solo and group shows in Australia and India, with nearly 100 artworks sold around the world, held in public and private collections in India, Australia, UK, USA, France, and Dubai. I have received an award in Australia, as well as a grant from Arts NorthWest to express my experience of living on a farm in regional NSW, Australia, through an artistic project. As an art educator, I have taught children in Gunnedah Bicentennial Gallery, Australia, and currently work with children with disabilities at AADI, New Delhi. I also mentor children and adults through private workshops and classes. Since art has been life-saving for me, I encourage others to not only enjoy it too, but also believe in themselves as artists.
​
Prior to quitting my jobs to pursue a lifetime of art, I have worked as an advertising writer and filmmaker. Over the years, I have trained in jazz, salsa, contemporary dance, classical guitar, and the first year of Hindustani classical singing - all of which now reflect in my performances. My longer term goals include instituting scholarships for Indian students to study art in India or abroad, creating a home for women, and directing resources to the cause of mental health.
​
From standing inside what used to be a prison cell in Australia and narrating stories of women who felt trapped inside a box, to telling stories of courage and survival from my own life, my artistic journey has led me to become bolder and more courageous with each successive artwork. I find myself constantly working towards creating a life that is increasingly more purposeful and meaningful, and aim to lead a life that is a work of art in itself.
Selected Exhibitions
​Trains of Thought (solo for two) | Visual Arts Gallery, India Habitat Centre | 21 Aug - 24 Aug, 2023
​
Sunsets Are More Beautiful at the Farm (solo) | Gunnedah Bicentennial Creative Arts Gallery, Gunnedah NSW, Australia | Dec 2021 - Jan 2022
​
Dissonance Through Poetry and Art (group) | Mounted Ari, Blue Mountains, NSW, Australia | Mar - Apr 2022​
​
The Grad Show 2020 (group) | National Art School, Gallery and Studios, Sydney | Dec 2020
​
Remote Control (group) | Library Stairwell Gallery, National Art School, online | Aug 2020
​
Where Dreams Come From (solo) | Galerie Romain Rolland, Alliance Française de Delhi, New Delhi | Jul 2016
​
Colour Tandav 1 (group) | AIFACS, New Delhi | Jan 2015
Suspended (group) | D Art Factory, Gurgaon | Nov-Dec 2014
​
Future Masters (group) | Epicentre, Gurgaon | Aug 2014
​​​​​​​​​​​​
​
Selected Experiential Performances
The Body Speaks | Screening of Performative Video Artwork
NIV Art Centre | July 2024
Until I Scatter Like Light (solo experiential event), curated by Mr. Aakshat Sinha
Urban Fringe, New Delhi | Mar 2024
Layers of Love, an interactive storytelling experience (solo) |
ArtBuzz Studios, New Delhi | Apr 2023
​
Chook Chook Chook Chook Chookie
As part of my solo exhibition, Sunsets Are More Beautiful at the Farm
Performed in collaboration with staff and students of Gunnedah Conservatorium
Gunnedah Bicentennial Creative Arts Gallery, Gunnedah NSW, Australia
Dec 2021 - Jan 2022
Things I Couldn't Say (collaborative performance led by me) |
National Art School Gallery and Studios, Sydney | Dec 2020
The Feeling of a Space (solo performance) | Ex-prison cell, National Art School,
Sydney | September 2019
​​
Awards
Parkers Sydney Fine Art Sculpture Award
Sydney, Australia
2020
​
Grants
Grant from Arts North West, NSW, Australia
given to me to express my experience of living on a farm
in Gunnedah, NSW, Australia, in 2021
​
This was followed by an invite from the Gunnedah Bicentennial Gallery
to put up a solo exhibition with them
Education
Bachelor's Degree in Fine Art
National Art School
Sydney, Australia
Bachelor's Degree in Mass Media and Mass Communication
Indraprastha College, Delhi University
DELF B1 Diploma in French
Alliance Française de Delhi
​
Trained under the guidance of esteemed
artist and mentor, Mrs. Vijaya Bagai
Work Experience
Art Educator
​
Art Educator for Children With Disabilities ('special needs' is now an outdated term)
Action for Ability Development and Inclusion, New Delhi
2023 - current
Weekly workshops for children at
Gunnedah Bicentennial Gallery, Gunnedah, NSW, Australia
2021
​
Private tuitions in drawing, painting, stop motion animation, and other creative workshops
​
​
​
Coordinator Cultural Activities
​
Worked with L'Opéra Art Café
in Bikaner House, MG Road, and Punjabi Bagh
to moderate and host book readings with authors,
curate art exhibitions, as well as moderate
poetry roundtable events.
​
​
Filmmaker
Scripted, wrote, handled camera for short and documentary films
Casting Director of National Award-winning film, 'Ship of Theseus',
and other independent films.
​
​
Advertising Writer / Copywriter
Worked as a copywriter at Ogilvy & Mather, Bombay and Iris, Gurgaon.
Wrote ad films and long and short copy ads for Cadbury Gems, Cadbury Bournville,
IDBI Bank, Bajaj Pulsar, etc.
​
​
​​​​​​​​​​
​