Rocky Mol Selvaraj is a visual artist from South of India, currently living in the UK. Her work explores themes of Caste identity, memory, and belonging through symbolic imagery, most notably the apple. Rooted in her lived experience as an Untouchable Dalit woman, her practice transforms the personal into the universal, weaving narratives of resistance and reclamation. Through painting and photography, she confronts and critiques the Indian caste system, expressing both discontent and defiance, while also envisioning hope and love as transformative forces capable of healing what divides us.
Academic Qualifications:
MA in Fine Arts, 2022 , University of Lincoln
Bachelors of Technology: Energy and Environmental Engineering 2015
Memberships:
Associate Member at Backlit Nottingham from 2024,
Lumina Collective, Backlit Nottingham, 2025
Exhibitions, Residencies:
1. Emp’s piece, Usher Gallery, Lincoln, 2022
2. Renewal, Doddington Halls and Gardens, 2022
3. Brink-MA graduate show, Project Space Plus, UoL,2022
4. Usher open exhibition: Art out of isolation, Usher Gallery, Lincoln, 2022
5. Legacy, Artscape Award, Lincoln Central Library, 2022
6. Kolam, An intervention and workshop at Primary, Nottingham, Nov 2024- Feb 2025
7. RE-POSTED, PSP, University of Lincoln, March 2025.
8. Verkodugal- Vaanam Arts Festival, Lalit Kala Academi, Chennai, April 2025
9. Kolam ephemeral- Micro-residency, Tanjavur, 2025
Awards /Grants :
1. ArtEscape Award, Lincoln Central Library, 2022
2. ACT programme fellowship-Unspoken rules of the Art World- sponsored by
SU Collection (Madrid /Berlin)
Publications/ press:
Looking beyond Skin through Apples by Rocky Mol Selvaraj, 2025
Interview with Hochstamm Deutschland e.V. , 2025 : https://www.hochstamm-deutschland.de/nachricht/identitaet-hat-eine-form-und-manchmal-ist-sie-rund
Public engagement:
Workshop Faclitator, Reimagining apples, Primary Nottingham, December 2024
Panel member, The Dalit and Adivasi Film Festival (DAFF),School of Arts and Humanities at Nottingham Trent University, 2025