We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Divya Gangwani a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Divya, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

One of the most meaningful projects I’ve worked on was actually a research project that became part of my college thesis. My thesis explored the concept of the Indian feminine within my family, examining how the women in my family were shaped by both patriarchal structures and the lasting effects of colonialism.

As part of this work, I focused on my grandmother’s immigration journey during and after the Partition of India and Pakistan. I created a visual map tracing her path from Pakistan to India, then to Vietnam, back to India, and finally to Hong Kong, where my family eventually settled and where I grew up.

Creating the map was a deeply moving experience. Seeing the journey laid out visually made me realize just how much my grandmother endured at such a young age. She was incredibly brave, and she lost so much when she was forced to leave Pakistan. The project became meaningful to me because it felt like a way of honoring not only her story, but also the resilience and sacrifices of my family as a whole.

My grandmother rarely speaks about Partition. Whenever it comes up, she simply says, “Times were tough,” and I’ve always respected her reluctance to revisit those memories. But when I showed her the completed map, she became emotional. She was happy to see the life she had built and how far she had come. That conversation gave me a glimpse of her younger self, a woman I had never really known before. It transformed family history from something abstract into something deeply personal.

To this day, that project remains one of the most special and meaningful experiences of my life because it allowed me to preserve a story that might otherwise have remained untold, while deepening my understanding of my family, my heritage, and my grandmother.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I’m a multidisciplinary artist, creative director, and digital marketer based in New York City. I was born in Hong Kong with Indian roots, and much of my work is shaped by questions of identity, migration, family history, and memory. I studied Photography at Parsons School of Design, where I began exploring how images could hold personal and cultural narratives at the same time.

I did not take a traditional path into one industry. My background in photography naturally expanded into creative direction, storytelling, and digital strategy. Over time, I found myself working across arts organizations, cultural spaces, and creative communities, helping artists and institutions connect with audiences in more thoughtful and engaging ways. Alongside my own artistic practice, I have built a career in digital marketing, using visual storytelling to help organizations grow while staying true to their mission and voice.

My personal work explores the Indian feminine through themes of intergenerational relationships, colonialism, immigration, and beauty standards. I often work with photography and archival materials, drawing inspiration from family photographs. Much of my work centers around the women in my family as a way of understanding memory, care, and inherited experiences.

At the core of everything I do is storytelling. Whether I am shaping a creative campaign, directing a visual project, or building a digital presence, I care deeply about creating work that feels honest and meaningful. I am interested in how stories can foster connection and make people feel seen, particularly within communities and conversations that are often overlooked.

What sets me apart is the way I move between creative and strategic thinking. I approach projects with an artist’s perspective, but I also understand how to connect with people and build lasting engagement. I care about creating work that not only is visually interesting, but also comes with intention and impact.

What I am most proud of is, building and being part of spaces that support artists and underrepresented voices while creating work that sparks conversation around identity, belonging, and representation. Whether through my art, creative direction, or digital storytelling, I want people to know that my work is rooted in care, collaboration, and authenticity.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I think the most rewarding aspect of being an artist is finding community. Whether it is connecting with like-minded people through shared ideas, building meaningful friendships, or meeting mentors who guide and teach you along the way. There is something incredibly special about growing alongside others. The creative community in New York is so vast and constantly evolving, and I feel grateful to be part of a space that continually inspires me and pushes me to learn.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

My ultimate goal is to become a full-time artist. It has been some time since I last consistently made work, and after art school, I found myself overthinking the creative process and becoming afraid to begin again. I put a lot of pressure on myself to make work that felt meaningful or “worth it,” which made it difficult to create freely.

Even so, I have remained connected to creative communities and spaces, and being surrounded by other artists has slowly inspired me to reconnect with my own practice. This year, I am hoping to return to making work in a more intentional way and rebuild that relationship with creating.

Long term, my goal is to sustain a full-time artistic practice and exhibit my work in gallery spaces. More than anything, I want to create work that feels honest to my experiences and contributes to larger conversations around identity, memory, and belonging.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.divyagangwani.com/
• Instagram: @divs_gangwani
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/divya-gangwani-2223191a4/