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Here, Sonaly Gandhi presents a figure painted with a striking red and blue checkerboard pattern, set against a similarly geometric backdrop. The checkerboard, a motif that echoes through art history, from ancient games to heraldic symbols, here suggests a sense of order, but also of division and contrast. Think of its use in medieval art to depict the duality of good and evil. The figure’s posture is withdrawn, her face hidden, evoking melancholy. This is reminiscent of the melancholic figure in classical art, a symbol of deep thought and internal struggle, suggesting profound introspection. Gandhi taps into a collective memory of human emotion through this pose, a visual language that speaks of vulnerability and the weight of contemplation. This image reminds us that symbols carry with them the echoes of past meanings.