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Instagram: @shruti__arts
Shruti Vij is a mixed media artist based in Gurugram whose practice explores the intersection of art, design, colour, texture and sustainability. With a background in leather design from the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), New Delhi, Vij brings a material-focused approach to contemporary art, experimenting with discarded leather scraps, acrylics, paint and other materials to create expressive compositions.
Her practice reflects an ongoing interest in creative reuse and sustainable art, where materials that might otherwise be considered waste are transformed into artworks with new visual and emotional meaning.
Shruti Vij’s creative journey is closely connected to her background in leather design. Her experience with the material continues to influence the way she thinks about texture, colour, composition and materiality.
Rather than treating leather solely as a finished design material, Vij explores its possibilities as an artistic medium. Scraps and leftover fragments become components of her mixed media works, allowing her to experiment with different surfaces, forms and combinations.
Her practice encompasses mixed media, acrylic art and abstract art, with sustainability remaining an important part of her creative process.
A defining aspect of Shruti Vij’s work is her use of discarded leather scraps. Through cutting, layering, arranging and painting, she transforms fragments of leather into contemporary compositions.
Each fragment brings its own physical qualities to the artwork—its colour, texture, shape and character. By bringing these individual pieces together, Vij creates a new visual context in which discarded material becomes the starting point for artistic exploration.
For the artist, these fragments are not simply waste. They represent possibilities.
This approach places sustainability and creativity at the centre of her practice while also demonstrating how material reuse can become an integral part of contemporary art-making.
Material experimentation is central to Shruti Vij’s artistic process. Her works bring together leather fragments, paint and other materials through processes of cutting, layering, arranging and reimagining.
These processes allow her to explore how different materials interact with one another. Texture becomes an important part of the visual experience, while colour and composition help transform individual fragments into cohesive contemporary artworks.
Her practice reflects the influence of design while maintaining the openness and experimentation associated with mixed media and abstract art.
For Shruti Vij, “Matter Meets Meaning” represents the relationship between material and imagination, sustainability and creativity, and the discarded and the valued.
In her leather scrap artworks, fragments that were once created for another purpose are brought together to form new images, emotions and narratives. Each piece of leather carries its own physical character, while the artist’s process gives these fragments a new visual context.
“What is discarded can still hold a story.”
This idea lies at the heart of her work. Instead of viewing leftover materials simply through the lens of their previous use, Vij approaches them as artistic possibilities. Through cutting, layering, arranging and painting, she gives discarded leather a second life within contemporary mixed media art.
Shruti Vij’s work demonstrates how sustainable art can emerge through creative experimentation with existing materials. Her use of discarded leather connects artistic practice with the idea of reuse, encouraging a different way of looking at materials that might otherwise be overlooked.
Her approach is not simply about incorporating recycled or discarded elements into an artwork. It is about exploring what these materials can become when they are removed from their original context and given a new purpose.
The result is a practice where art, design and sustainability come together through material experimentation.
Another important element of Vij’s practice is her appreciation of the beauty of imperfection. Leather fragments are not necessarily uniform; their variations in texture, colour, shape and character become part of the creative process.
Instead of hiding these differences, Vij works with them. The irregularities of the material can contribute to the character of the final composition, making each fragment part of a larger visual narrative.
This approach reflects her belief that discarded materials can be transformed into something meaningful, beautiful and emotionally engaging.
Shruti Vij’s work occupies a space between art and design, informed by her leather design background and driven by an interest in contemporary mixed media practice.
Her artworks bring together material experimentation, colour, texture and creative reuse. By transforming discarded leather scraps into new compositions, she explores how materials can move beyond their original purpose and acquire a new identity through art.
Her practice ultimately asks viewers to reconsider the value of materials and the possibilities hidden within what has been discarded.
At Bhavkala’s Matter Meets Meaning, Shruti Vij presents a practice that reflects the exhibition’s exploration of material, creativity and meaning.
Her leather scrap artworks demonstrate how fragments of a material can be transformed through imagination and artistic intervention. What begins as leftover leather becomes part of a new visual language—one shaped by colour, texture, composition and creative reuse.
For Vij, the meeting of matter and meaning is about giving materials a second life and allowing that second life to carry meaning.
Through her work, discarded leather becomes more than a leftover material. It becomes a medium for experimentation, expression and new possibilities.
Explore Shruti Vij’s mixed media practice and her approach to sustainable art, leather scrap art, abstract compositions and creative reuse at Bhavkala’s Matter Meets Meaning exhibition.
