KARL ANTAO
Karl Antao has an extraordinary ability to infuse expression into cold blocks of wood creating mammoth sculptures and complex visual metaphors. It is the stillness of the wood-block that challenges him to give it a life of its own resulting in sculptures radiating with human emotions. Being a former advertising professional, Antao decided to become an artist to bridge the gap between the final form and a designer’s visualisation. Wood directs him to contain a dialogue between the medium and the emotions he wants to express. He also, sometimes, works in bronze.
Karl Antao’s sculptures have been displayed at Gallery Espace, New Delhi; Gallery Beyond, Goa; Chester Herwitz Gallery, Ahmedabad and the National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia.
He is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Best Solo Show, India Habitat Centre Award in 2005 and the Best Sculpture Award, All India Arts Society in 1992.
The artist lives and works in Ahmedabad.
About The Work
Courtesy of Gallery Espace, New Delhi
Karl Antao’s sculptures were initiated during the Covid period, a time marked by rupture, isolation and the reconfiguration of human connection. The works reflect on emerging forms of communication and substitution, questioning what is lost and what is repurposed when natural and social systems are interrupted. Trees, once living habitats for countless creatures, are cut down and reimagined as components within metal structures designed to shelter human beings. In this transformation, the tree’s spine is replaced by the back of a human figure, suggesting a quiet exchange between nature and humanity, and an uneasy redistribution of support and responsibility.
Antao employs a chainsaw blade to carve these forms, a process that leaves visible traces of force and intervention. This method generates a new visual language that mirrors the tensions of the period: vulnerability alongside resilience, destruction paired with adaptation. The imagery speaks to bodies and environments being reshaped under pressure, echoing the physical and psychological strain experienced during the pandemic.
The work evolved instinctively from a single log of wood that the artist lived with and nurtured over time. As he worked, Antao reflected on the solace and sanctuary offered by nature during periods of confinement, recalling moments of quiet observation, such as watching clouds drift and reform. These reflections infuse the sculptures with a sense of stillness and contemplation, positioning them as meditations on survival, coexistence and the fragile balance between human needs and the natural world in a time of global uncertainty.