I am constantly influenced by both tradition and process. These two elements are an integral part of working with clay, and I view other aspects of my practice such as painting and drawing through a craftsperson’s lens.

In the process of making this exhibition I was fascinated by the idea of introducing a handcrafted quality into a digital medium (giclee printing). I wanted to reproduce these miniature paintings and drawings done on ephemeral papers (postcards, take away bags, and cards) at a greatly enlarged scale, bringing to light the nuances and unseen qualities of small scale works.

The images were drawn from digital snapshots taken at odd angles in fleeting moments and reproduced as handmade works on card, painted and drawn with simple materials such as watercolours, Indian ink, pencil, acrylic, gouache, and tilak powder (red ochre & sandalwood paste). The final stage was the reproduction of these drawings as high quality digital prints on exotic papers, bringing the process full circle.

Our collaborative works follow the same process, juxtaposing the contemporary experience of an outsider over traditional Indian designs. Pramod’s underlying design is originally painted in watercolour, then reproduced as a colour print over which I have drawn in a new layer of imagery, before its final reproduction as an digital image.

2008

Giclee print on german watercolour paper.

Keshari Ruchika for lunch-(air conditioned) byanjan, Dashashshwamedh Road, Godowlia, Varanasi – 01, Ph: 241 2006… daydream over a nicely printed napkin.

2007

Giclee print on german watercolour paper.

The most intense present tense – a million people, all doing something, all at once, all around you, simultaneously, physically, and with purpose.

2007

Giclee print on german watercolour paper.

2007

Giclee print on banana paper.

Outside the Indian Museum of Terracotta bright yellow wasps buzzed around in random directions making homes in the sculptures.

2007

Giclee print on banana paper.

Terracotta craftsman exist in all villages in the eastern part of Tamil Nadu and are expert at making small votive figures, such as peacocks, which can be strung together as mobiles and hung in the trees for decoration.