The installation comprised 4000 matchboxes; each box displayed a print of one of six unique oil paintings. The project began with six distinctive hand-painted matchboxes. I painted the matchboxes so my art could leave art galleries and private collections and end up in people’s lives. I imagined people appreciating the paintings as they used the matchboxes. Ironically, a wealthy collector bought the matchboxes for 250 rupees each. To make my art attainable and approachable, I mass-produced the matchboxes and sold them for 15 rupees each. The boxes were slightly more expensive than a standard matchbox (after all, they were art) but not too costly to deter people from using them. The print was durable, and the container could be refilled with matchsticks. One afternoon, a woman walked into the gallery and bought two matchboxes. As she left, she said, “I never bought art until now.”
