Date: 13th May - 17th May 2008

Venue: Arndean Gallery, 23 Cork Street, London, W1S 3NJ

Arzan Khambatta (aka The Iron Man) is a sculptor and qualified architect. His career started with the latter, having originally graduated from Rachna Sansad's Academy of Architecture in India in 1991. With his father, Rusi Khambatta, being a practising architect, it was a natural path for him to follow.

His fascination with metal began when he was 16 upon attending an art class with his sisters that summer in the late great sculptor, Adi Davierawala's studio. Though he was initially introduced to the use of papier mâché, wood and clay, he was more interested in the scraps and how they could be welded together to create works of art – works which he coined ‘Scraptures’.

Arzan’s first break came in 1983 when a close family friend bought his first work (titled The Horse Head – Asp-iSyah). He then went on to secure his first public commission in 1985 in which he created ‘The Mughal’ outside an Indian restaurant in Worli.

He’s since held numerous solo exhibitions in various spaces such as the Jahangir Art Gallery, the Brila Academy of Art and the Museum Art Gallery in Mumbai.

He no longer utilizes scrap metal in his work, choosing to use metal sheets, rods, pipes and various other non-scrap items instead. However, the effect of coining a clever and memorable name, coupled with an ingenious art form, has meant that the term ‘Scraptures’ is (still) synonymous with his name!