Visualising Stories That Surround Us In Oblivion
Our life is an accumulation of infinite stories. While some happen to be a part of us that are told, visible or experienced; some merely surround us being untold, distant and mundane. Ultimately, it is the ‘observation’ that makes them pertinent for introspection. The cosmopolitan city of Mumbai being pivotal for the community of artists and art appreciators enthrals us with two such exhibitions that emanate the preoccupation of drawing, based on the practice of observing; both nature and society.
Nasreen Mohamedi: The Vastness, Again & Again showcased at the Jehangir Nicholson Art Foundation is one of the first major exhibits of the artist’s works in Mumbai since her death in 1990 which was then followed by her retrospective a year later. The minimal, monochromatic abstraction in Nasreen’s work wasn’t just a manifestation of her inner dialogue but was highly influenced by real spaces. Puja Vaish, the curator of the exhibition writes, “While cultural specificities of place and time are effaced in her work, Mohamedi had a unique way of drawing from her surroundings. Her work philosophises the contemplative landscapes of the desert and the sea.” Vividly true, whether it is on the Kihim beach near Mumbai, the shorelines of Bahrain or in the starking Sahara Desert, Nasreen carefully observed the effect of the sea and forces of wind on the landscape, recording the constant shift in its movement and linear rhythm.
Although the exhibition brings an astonishing display of the artist’s drawings, paintings, photographs and sketches, her enduring relation with the camera gives us a peek into the sensitive and imaginative observation of her surroundings. From the 1950s to the early 1960s, she began photographing her vicinal environment in a way that was more than just documenting. Through cropping, clicking close-ups and maintaining unconventional angles, Mohamedi was able to visualise patterns similar to her work as she captured the world around.
As the curator writes, “There was an authenticity in how Mohamedi merged life and art.” Believably it is this legacy of her that remains without a parallel. The exhibition is on view till the 28th of May.
Another exhibition, Quieter Than Silence – compilation of Short Stories by Shakuntala Kulkarni is on display at Chemould Prescott Road. Kulkarni is a Bombay based, Karnataka born multidisciplinary artist whose works pirouette around the central idea of gender specific issues related to the lives of urban women in a highly patriarchal societal space and construct. Her observation of the same has allowed her to address the feeling of pain, claustrophobia, alienation, fear, and violence experienced by women on multiple levels. While her practice spans widely in terms of mediums ranging from two-dimensional drawings & paintings to three-dimensional sculptures, and furthermore to multimedia installations and performance videos; this exhibition focuses on her practice of drawing to express her concerns in these themes.
The seven series of drawings showcased, possess a very distinctive sense of dread and uneasiness with women’s bodies in uncomfortable positions that are sometimes elongated, convoluted or even trapped with an armour fusing with the body resulting in a bizarre appearance. The figures in her drawings confront the bold & fierce strokes of line exaggerating the dynamism in them. The anxiety is even more accentuated by the dominant use of black pigment and the intense rubbing of charcoal on paper. Remarked by the eminent artist Sudhir Patwardhan, “The exhibition highlights the ambivalent and circular relation between safety and the loss of freedom, between sanctuary and prison.”
He further elaborates that, “‘Fallen warrior’, ‘Shattered’, ‘Antaheen’ – the series’ titles add to the dark moods of these works. We see helpless migrants trudging along as if in a trance, and bodies desperately trying to maintain balance. In her series of larger works “Stuck in the shadow”, strange bodies are caught in moments where they are about to topple: almost falling out of their own shadows, only to be saved by their sense of balance.” In the course of her practice, along with addressing these deep rooted issues of women in our society, Kulkarni also incorporates the possibility of dealing with them in a strange inward silence suggesting that only woman herself can be her saviour.
On till the 30th of April.
Text by Arooshi Bagri Maheshwari
Images courtesy: Jehangir Nicholson Art Foundation and Chemould Prescott Road.
Find out more about the exhibition:
https://jnaf.org/exhibition/nasreen-mohamedi-the-vastness-again-again/
