Courtesy of Luke Parish

On Thursday, April 3, the South Asian Youth Initiative opened its art exhibit at the Afro-American Cultural Center. 

Displayed through April 7 at the third floor gallery, the exhibit aimed to showcase work from South Asian artists that emphasizes this year’s theme of the conference, “Reclaiming Roots.” 

In the 22 years of hosting SAYI, a national intercollegiate conference for South Asian and Indo-Caribbean students at Yale, this is the first art exhibit that has been included amongst the conference’s usual lineup of a fashion show, workshops and panelists.

According to SAYI Director Aly Moosa ‘25, the theme is inspired by global changes in politics, society and the economy to encourage participants to question and reconsider their identity.

“The art exhibit is a testament to recognize that there’s so many different ways of exploring identity,” said Moosa. “Specifically with this conference, it’s giving people the avenue to confront what identity means to them, challenge that, agree with it, disagree with it.”

The exhibition includes work from middle school students to graduate students to professional artists, showcasing a diverse range of experiences. 

Moosa and Nithya Guthikonda ’26 proposed the idea of this exhibit, as well as the plan to include New Haven public school students and give them an opportunity to engage in the conference.

“I thought it would be interesting to think about what it would mean for different people across ages to think about what reclaiming roots meant to them,” said Moosa. “To see the art not only as a conduit to explore that meaning, but also see it as a timeline.”

Four works were created by students at New Haven’s Betsy Ross Arts Magnet School, including two kiln-fired ceramics inspired by the ceramics used by Afghan women as water jugs and two hand-painted self-portraits that were digital photos.

Guthikonda explained her process behind selecting the art and artists to be featured in the exhibit. She said she wanted the exhibit to be reflective of the emotional impact of the project, emphasizing the intimacy and vulnerability of the artists’ work.

She added that in displaying these artworks was “so much more” about the artist than their artwork. 

In her curatorial vision, Guthikonda included testimonies and personal statements written by the artists to emphasize their unique individual experiences with “reclaiming” their roots.

“Reclaiming roots is about being comfortable in your South Asian identity in a world that is sort of defining what South Asia is for you,” said Hanan Yousuf ‘26, panel curator for SAYI.

A diverse array of mediums was incorporated in the exhibit, including a series of photographs, a quilt made from used pants, shirts and gamchas and a video installation.

The assortment of various artistic media reflected the diversity of ages, perspectives and timelines captured by the art. Yousuf said that these qualities made for an immersive viewer-experience.

“We’re understanding the past and our present so that we can further the future as well,” said Yousuf.

Guthikonda connected personally to prominent Indian photographer Sunil Gupta’s video installation titled “Love Undetectable.” The piece features a series of interviews of three queer Indian women speaking directly to the viewer.

“They’re looking at you, and saying the word ‘you,’ in the present tense, and that brings you into the narrative,” said Guthikonda.

The exhibit also aims to represent people from across the South Asian diaspora, including those of Indo-Caribbean students — a decision that motivated SAYI to reach out to the House.

“We reached out to the House to host our exhibition here, as the House is not only representative of  Caribbean students, but it’s also a safe haven for multiple people of identities,” said Moosa.

On Sunday, April 6, SAYI hosted a workshop for curator Indira Abiskaroon to give a talk on how art spaces and galleries can better include and center South Asian and Indo-Caribbean work. 

Currently working as the curatorial assistant of modern and contemporary art at the Brooklyn Museum, she said that it’s difficult to achieve visibility without the tokenization of people. 

“The art world has yet to succeed in achieving true inclusivity,” said Abiskaroon.

She remarked on how a shared place of origin does not necessarily lead to shared beliefs; South Asians are not a monolith, she said, despite their art frequently being lumped together in art spaces.

Abiskaroon explained the “hierarchy” of Asian identities and said that East Asian art is often more prioritized in exhibit features. Oftentimes, she said, this led to exhibits focused on Asian Americans to center on East Asian diasporas.  

Fielding questions from the audience, Abiskaroon said that as a curator, she looks to build personal relationships with South Asian and Indo-Caribbean artists. 

She described this partnership as a “mutual investment,” through which both parties could work together to change the exploitative practices of galleries.  

Guthikonda stated she designed the exhibit to give each story its own voice. She personalized the exhibit for each of the artists to emphasize the different cultures within the South Asian diaspora. 

Moosa hopes the art exhibit will be expanded in future conferences to make space for Indo-Carribeans and other communities that are “entangled” in the South Asian diaspora. 

“I hope that this art exhibit is one of many for the future of SAYI, and I hope that this conference, this year, sets a precedent of recognizing what other forms of programming that we can include and the different audiences that we can include in those programming,” said Moosa. 

Formed by South Asian student leaders at Yale and Columbia, the conference was named the South Asian Millennials Conference before eventually adopting its current name.