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New Delhi-based ChampaTree art gallery is set to open an art space in Hyderabad on October 10. Housed within Artyk, a furniture showroom on Road No. 44, Jubilee Hills, the gallery wants to make art part of everyday life. The launch coincides with Where We Continue, a group exhibition featuring works by 17 artists from across the country.
Co-founded by architect-turned-art curator and entrepreneur Archana Sapra and visual artist Pooja Bahri, the contemporary gallery grew out of their Art For Art Foundation, a platform they started in 2011 to support artistic practice, mentorship and dialogue.
Art and design
“The idea is to integrate art and design,” says Artyk founder Prachi Agarwal as she walks us through the exhibits. “We are design-centric in the way the showroom is built and what we display. Bringing art into this space felt like a natural extension because art and design go hand in hand.”
Pooja Bahri and Archana Sapra
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
The lower-ground floor, spread across a little over 2,000 square feet, is the dedicated display space. The artworks also spill into the other two floors, alongside the furniture, showcasing works by young contemporary and mid-career artists associated with ChampaTree since its inception.
Debut show
ChampaTree Art Gallery opens on October 10 with Where We Continue, an inaugural group exhibition showcasing works of 17 artists from across the country who have been associated with the gallery’s programme. The launch also coincides with 15 years of the Art For Art Foundation and 10 years of ChampaTree in Delhi . The participating artists include: Abhijit Saikia, Appalachari C, Chandan Agrawal, Dindi Praveen Sagar, Harish Ojha, Keerti Pooja, Lalit Bhartiya, Lokanath Pradhan, M. D. Musthafa, Nandini Patel, Neha Dey, Ravi Chunchula, Samir Mohanty, Sonal Varshneya Ojha, Sonali Laha, Srinivas Pulagam, Venkatesh Dhuli and Yashvant Singh.
According to the co-founder Archana Sapra, the gallery works closely with emerging and mid-career artists, supporting practices as they enter wider public and collector-facing contexts. “Their exhibitions are developed through research, conversation and careful presentation, with an emphasis on documentation, clarity of artistic position and long-term engagement.”
Art experience
non-traditional gallery space
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
Launched in Delhi a decade ago, ChampaTree’s Hyderabad space is their first branch outside Delhi. The art space in a premier furniture showroom rather than a conventional art gallery, offers art lovers a different way to experience art. For Prachi, this artistic engagement gives a lifestyle experience. “Since the clientele valuing aesthetics and craftsmanship is the same, having an artspace within the premises felt like an organic progression.”
In these designed living spaces, visitors can experience how art appears in one’s home physically rather than using augmented reality (AR) apps, AI room visualisers or browser-based tools that project paintings or prints directly onto your walls at home.
Archana is also critical of the dramatic, museum-style fancy lighting galleries use to display artworks because they look spectacular but they do not always reflect how they appear in a living room or bedroom. “Art has to merge with your interiors, surroundings. It should become a piece of conversation when people come home. It should make you think, discover new elements, bring in a moment of meditation or make happy.”
Story behind the name
Interactive space
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
The gallery’s name is rooted in its distinctly Indian identity, inspired by the champa tree, which is known for blooming and thriving wherever it is planted. The founders hope artists, too, will experience flourishing creative growth and leave their mark wherever they go.
For Archana and Pooja, who started an art foundation even before opening a gallery, that history continues to shape their work. “Hyderabad expands the programme geographically, but the principle remains the same: sustained engagement with artists, careful presentation and relationships built over time. We wanted the new space to begin from that continuity, while remaining open to what this city may bring,” says Archana.
Published – October 07, 2026 02:43 pm IST
