IN THE REALM OF LINE, SPACE AND MEMORY
Time in its elemental form has always been a site of contestation where it provides materiality to abstraction, narratives that shape events or sometimes birth a memoir of a journey. It is this ontological precarity of time that constructs and deconstructs vivid forms of art making. Be it philosophical musings with self, political motivations or assemblages carefully nourished on a voyage; when witnessed in the realm of art it is metaphorical, an action in mark making or an intention to delve into the poetics and politics of space. Autobiography of a Line at Chatterjee & Lal, Postcards from a Journey at Sakshi, and Events, Memory, Metaphor at Tarq in Mumbai is an opportunity to engage with these multifaceted concepts.
Autobiography of a Line: The Photographs, Prints and Paper Cutouts of Nasreen Mohamedi at Chatterjee & Lal
The journey to self-reflexivity to arrive at quiet introspection is what Nasreen Mohamedi’s work asks one to ponder upon. Her methods in mark-making imbibe the potential of truth making; the aftermath is an image. The various intricacies of image-making that are concentrated in a line(s) are those that resonate with existential experiences. As Sasha Altaf, the curator of the exhibition writes, ‘Nasreen Mohamedi does not use line to represent an image; line is the image.’
The exhibition grants perspective to the complex understanding of the artist’s relation with a line, space and place; her meditations on the symbiotic alignments between form and space which have generated a language of their own kind. Her photographic practice is a revelation; a reflection of her contemplations upon the poetics that the abstract space beholds. The works part of the exhibition explore the possibilities of line, and its dimensionality in relation to drawing, materialised through the aforementioned elements. The exhibition is on view till 3 September 2022.
Postcards from a Journey at Sakshi Gallery
This group exhibition derives its title from a series of works by Rekha Rodwittiya. The creative trajectories of the artists is avidly reflected through the show. It is conceived in the tradition of pattachitra. The conceptual premise is that of narrative building constructing the individual artworks by the respective artists; brought together as portfolios or assemblages in the form of frames or chapters. These composites of multiple units are notes and memoirs themselves which wholly fabricate the foundation chapters of a novel.
The participating artists include Ankush Safaya, Anish Kapoor, Chintan Upadhyay, Kim Seola, Manjunath Kamath, Rekha Rodwittiya and Sachin Tekade. The exhibition is on view till 11 August 2022, 11 am to 6 pm.
Events, Memory, Metaphor at Tarq
Curated by Anish Gawande, the group exhibition, Events, Memory, Metaphor is influenced by Kashmiri poet Agha Shahid Ali’s poem “Farewell”. It critically engages with the archive as ‘a site of significance’ and its specificity in contemporary art. The exhibition investigates the interconnectedness of history and memory and how and why we access the past. The artists have engaged with the archive in different ways; some of them contesting it, reconfiguring it and blurring the lines between fact and fiction. The artists who are part of the exhibition include Areez Katki, Garima Gupta, Muzzumil Ruheel, Parag Tandel, Philippe Calia, Saju Kunhan, Sameer Kulavoor and Saubiya Chashmawala.
Areez Katki regards the collection as a space to explore his family history working with themes of spirituality, sexuality, and migrant identity through elements of domesticity, embroidery, and archival objects. Saubiya Chashmawala’s ink on paper holds a reconfiguration potential, turning to the Arabic script; navigating her own position between the sacred and the profane. Sameer Kulavoor’s READ & RESIST, POTATO WEDGES AND TIME and JCB demonstrate the need for an observer to document the here and now, raising questions about the politics of bearing witness. The exhibition is on view till 24 September 2022.
Text by Kuldeep Patil
Image Courtesy: Chatterjee & Lal, Sakshi Gallery, Garima Gupta, Parag Tandel, Sameer Kulavoor, Areez Katki and Tarq
Find more about the Artists and the Artworks:
https://www.instagram.com/chatterjeeandlal/
