House of Santal: Manhattan Gallery Spotlighting South Asian Design

House of Santal marks New York’s entry point for contemporary South Asian design. It is a new Midtown gallery that seeks to redefine the collectible-design narrative beyond the era’s dominant American and European showcases.

Housed on a sprawling seventh-floor office with sweeping views toward Radio City Music Hall, the space unfolds as carefully staged vignettes clustered around a courtyard. This courtyard nods to traditional Indian gathering places.

Founder Raksha Sanikam left finance to pursue interior design. She refined her practice at Pratt Institute and has spent more than six years uncovering contemporary South Asian talents.

The gallery’s name and its deep burgundy entrance reference santal, the rare sandalwood. This signals a cultural anchor for the program.

House of Santal: A dedicated platform for modern South Asian design in New York

The gallery centers on modern, largely handmade pieces that reinterpret regional furniture typologies. It does not deal in antiques.

Its layout uses the courtyard-inspired axis to create intimate design vignettes. These invite tactile engagement and conversation among collectors, curators, and design professionals.

Concept, setting, and design philosophy

Set on the seventh floor, the space is conceived as a kinetic social environment. Here, craft, materiality, and subtle ornamentation are the main themes across the program.

The deep burgundy entrance and display platforms establish a strong, tactile identity. The courtyard-centered arrangement fosters experiential viewing and mirrors traditional Indian assembly spaces in a contemporary gallery context.

Inaugural exhibition: 13 Indian designers and a modern craft narrative

The debut show spotlights 13 Indian designers whose works fuse traditional materials and crafts with contemporary approaches. The emphasis remains on craft, materiality, and refined ornamentation.

Notable entries show how ancient techniques can be reimagined for today’s interiors and objects of daily use.

• Nynika Jhaveri, Anikesa Dhing, and Thamshangpha (Merci) Maku — Fuzzy Bottom, a playful reinterpretation of the Naga bench with delicately carved forms and tufted seat mats.
• Upasana Jain — SS Cross Chair, which references woven-mat traditions through a polished steel frame and lattice webbing.
• Aashka Desai — Wall Sculpture Drava, made using Tencel yarns and silver foiling on high-density fibreboard.

Looking ahead: cross-border design conversations and regional expansion

House of Santal plans to broaden its invite list beyond India. Designers from neighboring countries such as Bangladesh and Nepal will be included.

This regional expansion aims to cultivate a richer, more diverse dialogue around contemporary South Asian design. It offers New York collectors and institutions a broader spectrum of craft techniques, materials, and aesthetic languages.

Implications for architects and engineers

The gallery shows how contemporary South Asian design blends traditional craft with modern production. This offers several insights for architecture and engineering professionals working in interiors and product supply chains.

• Material honesty and tactile design can inspire furniture systems and interior components that use craft-driven methods while maintaining performance.
• Gallery storytelling demonstrates how spaces can support collaborative design, from ideation studios to showroom environments.
• Cross-border design dialogue expands supplier networks. This enables access to artisans and specialists from Bangladesh, Nepal, and other regions for project collaborations.
• Curated display architecture highlights sustainability and responsible material choices. This approach connects design storytelling with ecological concerns.

 
Here is the source article for this story: Inside House of Santal, a new Manhattan gallery devoted exclusively to South Asian design