Transgress- Voicing the Vulnerable
A talk
by Vijaysagar Subbaiyaa
At the
Spaces, 6 pm 18/2/2020
Participating
Artists:
Vishnu
Sasi, Clement Raj, JibinBabu, Mani K Ayyappan, Rishi Sasi
Curated
by Sujeeth Kumar Sreekandan
( the text of my speech on the above occassion)
I feel excited to be here talking about
this show, as I think this is quite a phenomenal and a historic show in the
sense that it is simmering with a raw, untamed energy that is characteristic of
youth and this energy has become very scarce to come across in this hyper
censored world. This bunch of artists is quite gifted in that they have been
offered this wonderful platform to present their ideas and practice in an
unmitigated manner- unmediated by external factors like institution, mentorship
and commercial considerations. It’s also heartening to see that they have risen
up to the occasion and put up a very considerate and responsible show thanks to
the distant touch of the curator Sujeeth Sreekandan and their mentor, Ganesh Selvaraj.
At this early age in life, an artist is
usually subjected to moderation and mediation of the Institution and we scarce
get to see the artist untouched by the bigger and sanitising designs of the
institution. And after he graduates and starts his independent practice he
either loses this untamed fire to the abrasions of life in general or has to
give it up to ply by the considerations of the gallery masters. This show is
unique because it has happened free of these tribulations and It’s a piece of
wild energy presented intact and made palatable to our urbane sensibilities.
Some
of these artists have not been to an institution; some of them have not passed
out of the institution yet. They share a common umbilical connection to their
mentor Ganesh Selvaraj, under whom they have been picking up the nuggets of a
professional practice. I want to congratulate their mentor for not having
imposed any ideology or narrative contingency on to their work. Though certain
influences of style are obvious, the artists are fairly untouched by any kind
of ideological proselytization. This is also not surprising, given that Ganesh
himself is indifferent and averse to working with an ideology, as it was
evident in his recent talk at this venue. Ganesh’s practice hinges around
inviting the viewers to approach his works with an open mind.
Ganesh’s long association and work with the
artist group Kinetics, I believe has had a very positive influence on this
show. Group shows, i have come to realise, offer an interesting and exciting
avenue for multiple and varied treatment of a given mood or context in diverse
mediums and styles. Group shows are also unique in that they offer a strange
beauty in the form of a synergy achieved among artists and works. I believe
this show has achieved that synergy and beams with that wild beauty.
Vishnu Sashi’s works are a collage of
emotions. While one work reminds the viewer of crumpled balls of failed love
letters another plays around with the crumpled balls of paper as a distracting tool
to distract the viewer from the stark images on the collage and also to add a visual
dimension of a disturbed mind to the work. A third work featuring a collage of
pieces of canvas featuring distorted and animated versions of still life from
every day images is interspersed with coloured pieces of cardboard. Vishnu
seems to have a special liking for the striated surface of the card board which
again features in a work of ensemble of embossed shapes created with canvas.
Each image in Vishnu’s collage is worthy of
an undivided and complete attention in themselves. Yet he prefers to present
these images as an assortment, and bury them in a maze, leaving it to the viewer
to dig up and relish the images that savour their individual sensibilities.
At this age in life these young minds are
bound to be bothered by so many existential questions for which there would seemingly
be no answers or help forthcoming from people around them. Clement has chosen to
take refuge from these bothering questions in travels and look at the sadness
around him as a bystander. Themes of travel recur all overhis works. He has
reduced the human figure to a caricature that looks like a question mark, and
all these figures seem to be in some form a journey- some seem to be going down
a drain hole, others seem to be going around in circles and everyone seems to
be in search of that ever elusive key to all their problems. Clement’s works
come across as the more polite and understated work of this show.
Jibin’s works are the most disturbing ones
of this lot. Jibin has used the metaphor of ant to convey a persistent source
of intrusion and irritation. The wire sculptures of ant are throbbing with life and look threatening
streaming in in colonies, they could as well be a buzzing colony of bees. The
singular ant caught in an island of white looks like swearing vengeance and
poised for action. It is also interesting and serendipitous to note that this
figure of the ant has ivolved into motif for the show idealizing the seeming
naïve and innocent creature that can be a painful source of irritation to the
authority.
His self portrait epitomizes a highly disturbed
mind. Two ashen and robotic arms seem to have knocked an eye off, depriving him
of the solace he seeks in his dreams and look like tearing his face apart and can
be very painful on the viewer.
His ‘curse of a tree’
stands tall in vision and concept but somehow fails to make the visual impact
on the viewer. A little tweaking with the colour scheme could make a big
difference to this work.
Rishi creates a
stratigraphy aping the physical elements with a combination of material- the tower made of wood, the undulations of
surface in the form of ears, noses and genitals in plaster of paris, the river
of thread that runs across the striated surface. Together, this jigsaw pattern
of geographical features offers a visual puzzle of sorts and opens itself to
interpretations of the viewer.
The sturdiness of wood
probably alludes to the rigidity of institutions and the people we come across
there, the undulations in plaster of paris allude to a sensuality of a private
moment and the threads evoke a feeling of the self that keeps flowing on its
course in space and time immaterial of these public and private encounters.
Rishi manages to bring together a drama of these elements condensed across
space and time on to his work.
While talking to Mani
Ayyappan about his works he dropped this beautiful word ‘Prathishetha sekshi illathaaal’
in Malayalam for a man who is not capable of reacting to the things in the
society. This word was so fulsome and enough for me to talk volumes about his
work. The man in the photo wanting to cut himself off from the society could be
Kafka’s GregorSamsa, or Sallinger”s Holden Caulfield or Rahel and Estha from
the God of Small Things.
The figure in these
photos seems to be crying out in deep pain to a deaf or nonexistent society. He
has either been left behind or lost his way. This series is more relevant today
in these times of social networking, where one is expected to have and voice an
opinion about everything. Even as an artist one is often faced with this
question of how does one’s work reflect the times we live in.
These works that are
full of young adult consternations and rebellion beautifully fit into the theme
of Transgress. This is an age when one would want to break the rules and create
new ones. Transgress could also highlight the absurdity of the rules and the
times we live in. I am very happy for
these artists for they have made a studied choice of medium, concepts and ideas
to express their transgression. In the process they have made themselves
vulnerable, yet showing great character. The music played by the band INK on
the opening day complemented so well the art and spirit of this show.
Sujeeth has played the
crucial role of handling these bundles of explosive energy with care, helping
them choose from their portfolio of works, liasoning with stakeholders,
enabling a discourse around the show and giving us a show that will be
remembered as a brilliant milestone in the Chennai art scene. He has tended to
these artists as a loving elder and guided them in this enterprise.
Now for the bigger
question of where does the narrative strand of this show fit in the wider
discourse of the art world? In this context I would like to quote a British
polish Sociologist, Zygmunt Bauman. He says what we see in action around us is
a new Tribalism, a collective reaction to liquid modernity, that has resulted
in the dissolution of traditional bonds and certitude imposed on a society by
the vast processes of economic and social transformation triggered by
globalization. While on the one hand globalization gathers individuals and
communities together into an ever expanding web of consumption and production,
on the other hand it loosens the matrices of existential value in which lives
were conducted previously in this planetary drama.
I believe this show
kind of resounds with anger and concern about the asymmetries that is inherent
in this circulatory culture of Globalisation between those who can participate
in it and those who are left behind. Transgress I believe has endeavoured to
talk about the absurdities of our times and giving a voice to the vulnerable
While looking at this
show in the context of the art scene in Chennai, I am constantly drawing a
parallel with the ‘Labour’ show curated by C P Krishnapriya that was shown here
sometime back. In this context, I miss a well drawn out Curatorial statement
that I look forward to in any show. It is a joy for me to see the words blown
up and put up at the entrance to a show. It offers an anchor for the viewer to
approach the show. It’s a joy to keep going back to it to appreciate the show
better.
I am happy to see the eyes of these artists
untouched by any false sense of achievement, ambition or anxiety, rather immersed
in the joy of the moment, snuggling against each other and enjoying their
moment under the sun. It’s also heartening that their curator and mentor have
given the moment all to them, withdrawing and keeping a distant watch from the
background.
The life of an art
does not end with hanging it in the gallery; it is the discourse around an art
work that can add new dimensions to an art work. I wish to take this
opportunity to request artists to take an extra effort to make every visitor
feel very welcome to an art show and I want to encourage everyone in general to
visit art shows and assure you that you don’t have to be a buyer to visit an
art show. Every viewer is capable of adding to the discourse and enriching the
art. It is in a bid to kick start such a culture of deliberation and discussion
around art that this talk and discussion was conceived. I welcome you all to
pitch in with your thoughts on the show.
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