वज़न : Natasha Preenja aka Princess Pea

For nearly fifteen years, Preenja has worked closely with turned-wood toy women artisans from Etikoppaka, a coastal village in Andhra Pradesh. In Hymns for Mothers Preenja pushes beyond the norms of the traditional toy figurines and expands on the expressive potential. Composed of thousands of turned-wood forms, each piece forms part of a visual vocabulary that gathers like a hymn, poem, or letter, echoing the rhythms of domestic life and the intimate ties between labour and creativity.

Her marble sculpture series, Mothers, Bodies of Stone, signifies a pivotal evolution in her practice. Following years of engaging with traditional turned-wood techniques, this series represents an expansion in both material and scale. As echoed in the title of the show, each sculpture portrays women who bear the invisible weight of pain and unfulfilled desire. 

By carving in marble—historically associated with permanence, monumentality, and masculinity—Preenja reframes the female subject not as muse or passive form, but as a site of endurance, resilience, and quiet strength.

Foraying into woodblock printing, Backwards series draws inspiration from Warsan Shire’s poem of the same title.

“It’s not just the words, but the way she holds memory, grief, and healing all at once,” Preenja reflects. “Each mark I make on the cloth becomes part of a rhythm—a movement that goes beyond block printing.. where every gesture carries something of the past, reshaped through the act of mark making.”

This meditative quality lays the foundation of Preenja’s practice, the acts of making through which she listens, learns, and absorbs. वज़न invites viewers to reflect on identity, society, and tradition, while forging a community to sustain intergenerational knowledge of traditional crafts.

In an essay accompanying the exhibition catalogue Mario D’Souza writes, "Over the years Pea has developed a practice of active listening and witnessing – no words spoken, but time shared. Preenja on the other hand navigates “real-life”, playing everyday roles – a practice honed in between tasks and time. In both avatars though she remains an observer and meticulous record keeper. Women from her immediate life and those that pass through it find companionship, lasting or temporary. They are occasionally the same person, when the listening evokes empathy. There are many ways to read the head then – a guise or the other, a refuge or safe space, silence and interiority, or an archive of stories and lives lived."

About the Artist

 

 

Princess Pea is the alter ego of Indian artist Natasha Preenja, whose work explores gender identity, the body, and self-worth. Drawing on feminist literature, mythology, and traditional crafts, her practice explores the politics and aesthetics of care, domesticity, and women-led narratives of self. Trained as a painter, she works across drawing, photography, sculpture, and performance.

 

By concealing her identity behind a large anime-inspired headgear, the Princess Pea persona challenges patriarchal norms and preserves intergenerational wisdom in a way that no single person is able to. Preenja’s evolving practice, through Princess Pea, includes collaborative, time-based, and intervention-led work, fostering a growing community of camaraderie among diverse women. According to the artist, "The sculpture head is a tool that helps me and others take a pause in the brutal reality we live in. By handing over the headgear, anyone can be Princess Pea. For many women, it becomes a safe space for reflection.”

 

In 2008, Preenja founded THE PEA FAMILY Studio, collaborating with artisans to produce limited editions of wood sculptures, supporting the preservation of dying crafts. For over a decade, she has partnered with traditional toy artisans from Etikopakka, a coastal village in Andhra Pradesh, merging ancient turn wood techniques with contemporary aesthetics to craft a distinctive sculptural language. Recently, her work has expanded to marble, symbolising Mother Earth as the keeper of time and knowledge.

 

During the pandemic, she partnered with PURPOSE to advocate for women's rights in Bihar through the project "Care with Dignity." Her year-long project in Aldona, Goa, titled "Extra Time," served as a toolkit for socialisation, gender sensitivity, and ethical behaviour. This initiative was part of a socially engaged grant at KHOJ and culminated in "Threading the Horizon: Propositions on Worldmaking Through Socially Engaged Art Practices" at KHOJ 2022. She was also the runner-up for the 2021 Soho Art Prize. Her work had several solo and group exhibitions at Dip Contemporary, Lugano; Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai; Exhibit320, New Delhi; Shrine Empire Gallery, New Delhi; Rob Dean Gallery, London; Grosvenor Gallery, London; AORA Space virtual gallery, London; Apparao Galleries, Chennai, along with featuring at leading international platforms, including at the India Art Fair and Art Dubai.

 

Her works are part of notable collections such as Mead Art Museum, Amherst, Massachusetts, and The Museum of Living History by Mahindra, Mumbai.

 

Her work has been featured in The Huffington Post, Vogue, Elle, Harper’s Bazaar, Verve Magazine, Hindustan times, Times of India, The Hindu, The Indian Express, Deccan herald, Platform, Art India, Mint lounge, Zee zest, eShe, Homegrown, Midday, Blur the border, Beej living, Hyperallergic, Architectural Digest, and others.

 

Born into an army family in Punjab, Preenja received a Master of Fine Arts from the Delhi College of Arts.

 

She currently lives and works in Gurgaon, India.