‘Unstruck Melody’: Sikh exhibition comes to the historic V&A museum

For the past few weeks ‘Unstruck Melody’ has been showcased at the V&A, and you have just a few more days to check it out!

The exhibition is a collaboration between Nirbhai (Nep) Singh Sidhu, a British-born Canadian artist, and the UK arts organisation Without Shape Without Form. It features tapestry, sculpture, and film which explore concepts of Sikh spirituality.

The exhibition artistically presents simran (Sikh mantra meditation) in a way which is true to the Sikh faith but also understandable to those from other backgrounds new to the practice. The explanation of simran revolves around how meditation (also entwined with mindfulness, internal exploration and more) can help prevent external factors affecting oneself. The exhibit also highlights how the creation of artwork can also be seen as just another form of meditation, reaffirming a growing understanding of “meditation through movement”, or what it means to “be in the zone” or in a “flow-state”, modern terms for long taught Sikh practices and beliefs.

Many Sikhs are delighted to see authentic expression of Sikh spirituality in such an established British institution. The exhibition shows real depictions of simran and Sikhi, through examples like that of Sachkand Sri Hazoor Sahib Gurdwara (Nanded, India) for example, taking these things to a new audience but still staying true to Sikh history and beliefs.

The exhibition is showing at the V&A until the 15th of October and is free of charge. Without Shape Without Form also have lots of work to look forward to in the future, including the touring of their previous exhibition ‘Journey of the Mind’ which will be in London from the 21st of February to the 3rd of March 2024.