It’s always inspiring to know that while we live in a relatively small town, our community is fortunate to have a museum that continues to welcome a variety of artists who share their respective disciplines as well as their culture and personal perspectives.
The San Luis Obispo Museum of Art’s newest exhibition, The Secret Place, shares artist Siji Krishnan’s view of the world she grew up in as a child in India.
See for yourself what quiet respect and appreciation for our world can look like.”
Working primarily in handmade rice paper, Krishnan details in a flowing, almost dreamlike style the physical, natural and subtle spirituality she was raised in.
Krishnan shares some of her newer, large paintings, which are composed of a delicate layering of watercolors and oils to create her vision of the surroundings and nature she was inspired by in her native country.
Upon entering the Gray Wing, you are, at first, almost disappointed by the monochromatic color scheme that all her pieces display. Working primarily in muted colors, her paintings initially give the impression of loose organic abstraction. However, upon closer inspection, small details become visible—ponds, plants, small animals, birds, and the merest suggestion of figures.
While Krishnan is clearly sharing her story with us, she also allows us to interpret her work and create our own story as well. By doing this she embodies the Upanishadic philosophy of vasudhaiva kutumbakam, or “the world is one family.”
This is not an exhibit to rush through and move on. Instead, it asks us to pause and allow ourselves to be absorbed into her work. I found it to be soothing as well as inspirational.
The Secret Place is in place until February 22, 2026, which gives you ample opportunity to see for yourself what quiet respect and appreciation for our world can look like.
Editor’s Note: Watch a video of a conversation taped October 10, 2025, between SLOMA chief curator Emma Saperstein and artist Siji Krishnan.