Creative Coupling

A whirlwind romance, tragic loss and a meteoric rise—artists IDRIS KHAN and ANNIE MORRIS talk to SHAHNAZ SIGANPORIA about the healing power of art.

On a regular sunny day in Mumbai, I find myself in what was once the home of the Governor of British-run Bombay, William Hornby. Apart from the bones of the building, there’s little about the 18th century that remains—colonial regalia has been replaced by modern Indian luxury of high-fashion stores and art galleries.And in gallerist Ashwin Thadani’s Galerie Isa, tucked away on the first floor, I meet London-based artists Idris Khan and Annie Morris—rising stars of the Contemporary art world. Together, the husband and wife are an integral part of the Fitzgeraldian art landscape of today that carefully balances serious art with the society pages. They’re in Mumbai for their first-ever joint exhibition: “We work in adjoining studios and are very involved with each other’s work. But this is the first time we’re seeing our works curated together in a gallery. We’re excited,” says Morris.

IT TAKES TWO

Morris grew up around creativity and art; her godfather is the American playwright Israel Horovitz, her mother worked in the theatre and her brother was the creative manager at London’s The Old Vic. She rose to fame in 2003, when she illustrated Sophie Dahl’s first book, The Man With The Dancing Eyes. By 2006, Morris was commissioned by Christopher Bailey of Burberry to make a dress out of her ready-made sculptures created from painted clothes pegs. And painted clothes pegs. And her now-signature works are part of a commission for the Louis Vuitton Foundation.