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What do 'flawed' art works, an old essay, an unfinished to-do list and a deleted draft have in common? Each was unwanted, discarded. An exhibition brings 30 such artefacts together, to celebrate the meaning they still hold — and to remind artists and viewers that creativity is the aim, not perfection

- Natasha Rego

A deleted draft. A to-do list that would never be done. An essay written by a transwoman, pre-transition. Sculptures, photographs and paintings that their creators considered flawed, warped or unfinished.

These were among 30 exhibits recently displayed at Goethe Institut-Max Mueller Bhavan in New Delhi, in a pop-up exhibition titled Museum of Rejects. The show was part of the queer platform Gaysi Family's OPN Art House art bazaar, now in its second edition. The theme for the first edition, in 2023, was "Joy as a form of resistance". This time around, the idea was to provide a "new home" for works in progress, hoarded feelings, unsent messages, proposed applications, experimental experiments, overanalysed ideas and impulsive creations.

In doing so, the exhibition sought to offer visitors a chance to see beauty in the once-unwanted, and simply celebrate the attempt to make something.