Very few individuals can say that they’ve changed the world. Even fewer can say that they did it without firing a shot. Mahatma Gandhi, a proponent of nonviolence, did. “Experiments With the Truth: Gandhi and Images of Nonviolence,” now on exhibit at The Menil Collection, is the first ever visual arts exhibition to examine Gandhi’s philosophy and ethics of nonviolence — that is, his satyagraha. It includes the famous photograph Gandhi’s Last Possessions, which shows what the great man owned at the time of his death: two pairs of sandals, two dinner bowls, eyeglasses, a prayer book and a few other small items. “This captivating image not only felt like a portrait in absentia of a charismatic person, but an allegory of an extraordinary way of life,” says Menil director Josef Helfenstein, who organized the exhibit with Indian artist Amar Kanwar. “Our goal is to allow for an undistracted experience of these works…in the hope of eliciting a deeper understanding of their dialogue.”
Curated from a wide range of museums, galleries and private collections, the pieces on display include paintings, sculpture, religious icons, texts and photographs that document Gandhi’s life and legacy. “Experiments With the Truth: Gandhi and Images of Nonviolence” marks the 145th anniversary of his birth.
11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays. Through February 15. The Menil Collection, 1533 Sul Ross. For information, call 713‑525‑9400 or visit menil.org. Free.
Wednesdays-Sundays, 11 a.m.-7 p.m.; Wednesdays-Sundays, 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Starts: Oct. 2. Continues through Feb. 15, 2014
This article appears in Oct 2-8, 2014.
