Daughter of painter and writer Benode Behari Mukherjee (1904-1980) – considered one of the pioneers of modern Indian painting – and of sculptor Leela Mukherjee, Mrinalini Mukherjee studied painting in the Fine Arts Department at the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda (1965-1970) and then completed her studies in 1972 with a degree in mural design under the direction of artist K. G. Subramanyan (1924-2016). Under his influenced she became interested in the visual potential of various local materials, judged as poor and non-conventional, to create a new imagery. Following her early small rugs and tapestries, she elaborated increasingly complex compositions with the same materials. She chose to use mostly hemp (sulti) and burlap, conceiving biomorphic sculptures that are increasingly monumental. Hung from the ceiling or buried in the ground, her effigies, often regrouped in installations as in Vriksha Nata (Arboreal enactment, 199101992), fill spaces. In an almost “hand-crafted” way, she braided and multiplied knots to give life to a game of folds, curves and drapes, of fullness and emptiness.

Her textures recall the earth and her colours are influenced by the environment and flora. Her ornamental sculptures mixing human and vegetal forms often feature female-like forms (Pushp [Flower], 1993) and have been considered metaphors for fertility (Kapur, 2000). Maternal goddesses are both nurturing and devouring, working to take away male power. Although the titles of her works often refer to Indian mythological figures, Mukherjee refuses to see any connection with existing deities. With no preliminary drawings or particular influences, the forms evolve, according to the artist, unconsciously, into works that tend towards abstraction. She experimented with metal, ceramics, and bronze in all types of formats with series such as Matrix (2006) and Lava (2010), while always keeping references to nature and earth.