Steel Thalis from India, hand-polished and buffed to a mirror finish, offering soft reflections. Use as wall sculpture or mirror.

Acquired to San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) Architecture + Design Permanent Collection. Limited to 100 Pieces Worldwide.

MIRRORS FOR ALIENS, 2023

We were born & raised in India and now work in the USA on visas. India is our home and America has been our platform. Our identity is one of impermanence, the highs of our creative endeavors juxtaposed against reminders of our outsider status - not American, not Indian-American, not even permanent residents. USCIS* calls us Non-Resident Aliens.

These reflections on transient identity serve as the foundation for our latest work, Mirrors for Aliens, steel thalis polished to a mirror-like finish, to form reflective surfaces. The steel thali is ubiquitous in Indian households and restaurants, an unbreakable plate for all meals that embodies practicality, frugality, strength, and endurance. In Mirrors for Aliens, the thali acts as an iconic marker of our Indian-ness, humble yet aspirational, and of our Indian futures - simultaneously shiny and faint. The mirrored steel offers slightly distorted, soft reflections that speak to our blurred sense of identity and the complex emotional landscape that comes with living between cultures, countries, home and work.

*U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

Utharaa Zacharias & Palaash Chaudhary