Photo Essay: 'Reminiscence of Home' by Dhiraj Rabha

 Photo Essay: 'Reminiscence of Home' by Dhiraj Rabha

Dhiraj Rabha takes us into a former United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) detention camp in Goalpara, Assam, where he grew up. Through his lens, he captures the essence of his community's resilience, illustrating how they uphold their heritage with unwavering pride. These personal and intimate photographs show a community forging a sense of belonging within the confines of what was once a detention camp, transforming it into a sanctuary they proudly call home. Amidst this backdrop, Dhiraj's work navigates the complexities of identity and belonging as his community grapples with their place in the wider world.

Read More

Review of 'Mūḷ Māthī'

Review of 'Mūḷ Māthī'

Back in 2021, Dior’s Creative Director, Maria Grazia Chiuri, collaborated with the Chanakya Atelier to reinterpret Madhvi and Manu Parekh’s paintings as hand-embroidered textile panels. Embroidered over the course of three months using both traditional Indian and couture techniques, these panels formed the backdrop for Dior’s spring-summer haute couture 2022 show at Musée Rodin in Paris. The tapestries travelled back to India last month, where they were on display at a special exhibition, Mūḷ Māthī, curated by the Asia Society India Centre at Snowball Studios in Mumbai.

Read More

Photo Essay: 'Meet me in the garden' by Farheen Fatima

 Photo Essay: 'Meet me in the garden' by Farheen Fatima

Meet me in the garden is a series of staged portraits by Farheen Fatima, featuring the artist’s own friends. Taking its inspiration from their family albums and everyday scenes, the photographs have also been painted on. Together, the works are a portrait of the public park in North India, populated by people to whom it serves as a special space of leisure and intimacy.

Read More

Photo Essay: 'A factless autobiography' by Debmalya Roy Choudhuri

 Photo Essay: 'A factless autobiography' by Debmalya Roy Choudhuri

New York-based photographer Debmalya Roy Choudhuri has been shortlisted for the prestigious Louis Roederer Discovery Award 2022, curated by Taous R. Dahmani. Choudhuri’s work will be exhibited at the 53rd edition of Rencontres d’Arles, to be held from 4th July to 25th September, 2022. Presented by the non-profit organisation, SPACE STUDIO in Baroda, Deb's shortlisted body of work— titled A factless autobiography— introduces three profiles based on a multitude of portraits illustrating the singularity of kaleidoscopic identities.

Read More

A Review of N.S. Harsha: Stomach Studio

A Review of N.S. Harsha: Stomach Studio

In Stomach Studio, Harsha’s first solo exhibition in New Delhi — currently showing at Vadehra Art Gallery — the artist keenly observes our current pandemic-ridden world with both humour and despair. Comprising a cast of outlandish characters, from an octopus-headed lamp-lighter to mutant rats making love, his works —ranging from quotidian to supernatural — allude to a sense of eccentricity as well as perceptive socio-political awareness. We asked New Delhi-based writer Riddhi Dastidar to review the exhibition.

Read More

In Conversation with Habiba Nowrose

In Conversation with Habiba Nowrose

Habiba Nowrose is a Dhaka-based photographer and researcher whose practice largely revolves around making staged portraits that explore the role of gender in shaping human relationships. Through the series Concealed (2013) and Life of Venus (2018), she attempts to address the notions of beauty, anonymity, and how women are often compelled to live up to societal and familial expectations. We speak with her about her image-making process, the challenges she has had to encounter through her practice and her experiments with the narrative form of traditional documentary photography.

Read More

Photo Essay: 'Let Me Comb Your Hair' by Mika Sperling & Vasudhaa Narayanan

 Photo Essay: 'Let Me Comb Your Hair' by Mika Sperling & Vasudhaa Narayanan

During the COVID-19 pandemic, artists Mika Sperling and Vasudhaa Narayanan engaged in a call and response exchange, between Hamburg, Germany and Bangalore, India. Consequently, the quarantine forced them to look inwards with their practice — focusing on the language of care, family, intimacy, and the solitude surrounding their homes and neighbourhoods. The exchange between them explores tonalities and emotions that are both happenstance and constructed.

Read More