Always Coming Home
Poulomi Basu
23.05.2026 - 31.08.2026

Following a successful solo exhibition at Focal Point Gallery in 2025, East Quay is pleased to present Always Coming Home, a new solo exhibition by Indian artist, eco-feminist, and activist Poulomi Basu (b. 1983, Calcutta, India).

Spanning both gallery spaces at East Quay, the exhibition brings together moving image, sculptural installation, and photography. Basu’s work explores migration, systems of power, and their impact on the body, particularly brown bodies, within an increasingly volatile world. Central to the exhibition are Basu’s own experiences as an immigrant to the UK, reflecting on displacement and the psychological and emotional consequences of leaving one’s home due to conflict, violence, and political instability.

Basu’s practice is informed by South Asian Futurism, an artistic movement that reimagines the region’s future where traditional culture, mythology, and technology coalesce. Her work challenges colonial legacies while addressing urgent political, social, and environmental concerns, including climate change, religious conflict, and the patriarchal systems of power, and proposes alternative and speculative futures.

In Gallery 1, Basu presents Always Coming Home, an immersive moving-image installation projected onto a large suspended spherical object. Evoking an asteroid or black hole, the sphere hovers in a suspended moment before impact, serving as a powerful metaphor for war, destruction, and climate catastrophe. The work interweaves footage of conflict, ruined architecture, nocturnal landscapes, and personal archival material to create a poignant meditation on home, loss, and the forces that compel migration. It also reflects the complexities of bi-national identity, capturing the tension of belonging to multiple places simultaneously. Rooted in personal history, the work draws on Basu’s upbringing in a violent domestic environment and, as a result, is shaped by her mother’s encouragement to “live a life of choices.”

The exhibition also includes a selection of existing works alongside pieces from Basu’s series Sisters of the Moon, developed in partnership with WaterAid. Shot in Iceland, these self-portraits depict the artist in stark, dystopian landscapes devoid of water and life. The series critiques patriarchal and capitalist systems, imagining a future shaped by environmental collapse and the oppression of women. Through this work, Basu addresses gender-based violence, systemic inequality, and issues surrounding access to water, sanitation, and menstrual health.

‍About the artist
‍Poulomi Basu is a neurodiverse artist and author whose practice examines the relationship between systems of power and the body. Working across visual art, film, and creative technologies, her interdisciplinary approach reflects her transnational identity and operates at the intersection of art and social engagement. While her work often centres women from the Global South, it transcends geographic boundaries, addressing interconnected histories and global systems.

Basu’s practice explores the intersection of ecological, racial, cultural, political, and personal narratives, foregrounding the complexity of identity in contemporary society. Her hybrid, multi-media work spans photography, installation, collage, virtual and mixed reality, performance, and film, often drawing on magical realism and speculative futures. Basu is a full voting member of BAFTA. She is also a Magnum Foundation Social Justice Fellow, a National Geographic Explorer, and a Sundance New Frontier Lab Fellow.