Bhubaneswar: Artworks by two young women grabbed eyeballs at an exhibition that concluded here on Monday.

Ekta Singha and Rasmirekha Barik pushed the boundaries of creative expressions to create artworks during a month-long art residency programme hosted by Utsha Foundation.

Ekta is a trained painter, while Rashmi is a ceramic artist. Ekta follows the approach of Indian miniature to narrate her own story, while Rasmirekha expresses her feelings and experiences through ceramic sculptures.

But during this residency, both experimented with new material and form that is unconventional to their practice.

On one hand, Ekta has worked with traditional coir craftsmen of Raghurajpur and is narrating her story through sculptural forms in 3D. Rasmirekha is working with appliqué in 2D. Both use used clothes as a central material to give the message of waste management.

Rasmirekha, a Puri native, practises as an artist at the Lalita Kala Akademi here.

"I have been familiar with clay since my childhood and I have learned to enjoy the sensuousness of working with clay. My work is an attempt to visually represent my feelings and experiences."

Ekta's series depicted members of a family. She used Odisha's local crafts, including coir toy and the Pipili appliqué to create sculptures.

"Every finger can't be same. Likewise, in a family, all members are different. They are individuals but are connected by a thread. My visualisation of this series is exactly the same. One wants to break all barriers, but at the end of the day there is a limit which has been set into our mind with the word - family. These processes are being carried forward through the ages."

"The armature is done with coir toys and the outer body using Pipili appliqué," she added. Her intention was to juxtapose these craft and change their physical appearance with the anxiety to see what happens when they are placed together.