The Long Now of Us Explores Shared Time and Collective Presence in Bhubaneswar
Curatorial Note by Dr. Sashi sekhar Samanta
The Long Now of Us
In a world governed by speed, The Long Now of Us turns toward duration. It reflects on the shared present—not as a fleeting second, but as a living continuum shaped by memory, intimacy, distance, and return. This exhibition considers time not as something that passes, but as something we inhabit together.
The “us” in this title is intentionally open. It may signify lovers, families, communities, or even the fragile bond between humanity and its environment. Each artwork becomes a meditation on relational time—how moments accumulate, how silence holds weight, how presence transforms space.
Across painting, installation, sculpture, and mixed media practices, artists explore layering, erasure, repetition, and pause. Surfaces bear traces of what has been; forms suggest what is still becoming. The past does not disappear—it settles into texture. The future is not distant—it hovers quietly within the now.
Rather than offering narrative closure, the exhibition invites attentiveness. It asks viewers to slow their gaze, to feel the density of shared experience, and to recognize that meaning often resides in subtle continuity rather than dramatic event.
The Long Now of Us proposes that togetherness is not defined by spectacle but by endurance—the quiet act of remaining present across change. In this sustained attention, time expands. The gallery becomes a space not just of viewing, but of dwelling.
Here, the present deepens.
And in that deepening, we discover that what we call “now” is already a history we are creating—together.
A major solo exhibition titled The Long Now of Us by noted contemporary artist Jagannath Panda opened today at Lalit Kala Akademi, Bhubaneswar. The exhibition will remain open to the public until 28 February 2026, 5 PM.
Organised by EO Odisha and moderated by art thinker and cultural commentator Sibdas Sengupta, the exhibition brings together a compelling body of recent works that explore time, memory, and shared human presence.
The Long Now of Us reflects Panda’s continued engagement with layered narratives and psychological landscapes. Through large-scale paintings, mixed media compositions, and spatial arrangements, the artist investigates how personal memory and collective history overlap within the present moment. Textures appear built and erased; forms emerge and dissolve — suggesting that time is not linear but deeply experiential.
Speaking at the opening, moderators highlighted how the exhibition invites viewers to reconsider the idea of “now” — not as a fleeting second, but as a dense, evolving continuum shaped by relationships and lived experience. The title’s emphasis on “us” points to a broader dialogue between individual identity and shared cultural memory.
The gallery space has been thoughtfully curated to encourage slow viewing and contemplation. Visitors are guided through thematic sections that reflect intimacy, rupture, continuity, and becoming. The exhibition has already drawn significant attention from artists, students, collectors, and members of Bhubaneswar’s growing cultural community.
With The Long Now of Us, Lalit Kala Akademi once again affirms its role as a vital platform for contemporary artistic discourse in Odisha. The exhibition remains open daily during gallery hours until its closing on February 28.
