At 62, Dayanita Singh has a gaze that feels forever contemporary, forever compassionate. Released last year, her photo novel, Let’s See, did something unique – it reminded us that human conviviality and creativity don’t only last, they blossom, too. As Book Building, another book that Singh made in 2022, bears testimony to her labour, Gerhard Steidl, Singh’s publisher, reminds us, “Singh’s book no longer only reproduces art; the book is art.” Rather than sell silver prints of her work, Singh opts to construct books or ‘book objects’ with her pictures, making them affordable, and even more coveted.
Many of Singh’s book objects fold out as exhibitions. Some even hold museums within them. Dancing with My Camera, a large-scale retrospective, collects much of Singh’s work, thereby giving audiences a chance to see how her archive has quietly grown over time, and how her craft has flourished. After a five-month run in Berlin last year, the exhibition is now on display in Munich, and, later, in 2023, it will travel to Luxembourg and Porto. Not one to rest on her laurels, Singh tells us that if you want to discover beauty, you must learn how to ‘let go’.
Recently, celebrated writers like Teju Cole have given us their own guides to Singh’s photography. Nobel Prize winner Orhan Pamuk writes that he is so mesmerised by some of Singh’s photos, he feels he can ‘smell’ them. Beyond their praise, these authors afford us different ways of seeing Singh’s work. They remind us that her images are all in a constant state of becoming. They belong to the past and present, yes, but the future, too.
Bu hikaye Art India dergisinin April 2023 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Art India dergisinin April 2023 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
"The Fine Art of Going to the Pictures."
Dr. Banerjee in Dr. Kulkarni's Nursing Home at Chemould Prescott Road brings together 26 paintings featuring a series of dramatic scenes from Hindi and Bengali films. In conversation with Abhay Sardesai, artist Atul Dodiya talks about childhood trips to movie halls, painted figures gripped by tension, and the closeness and remoteness of cinematic images.
"To Finally Have Something of Your Own to Mine."
Dayanita Singh is the recipient of the coveted 2022 Hasselblad Award. Keeping the photograph at the centre, she speaks to Shreevatsa Nevatia about books, book objects, photo novels, exhibitions and museums.
FORCE OF NATURE
Alwar Balasubramaniam dwells on absences and ephemeralities in his new work, states Meera Menezes.
THE FRACTURED PROSPECT
Nocturnal landscapes as ruins in the making? Adwait Singh looks at Biraaj Dodiya's scenes of loss.
TEETERING BEYOND OUR GRASP
Meera Menezes traces Mahesh Baliga's journey from Moodabidri to London.
QUOTIDIAN REVOLUTIONS
Arushi Vats shows how Rajyashri Goody is remaking the public sphere by addressing Dalit identity and history.
MEASURES OF SILENCE
Dia Mehhta Bhupal's constructed sets evoke absent presences and textural depth, states Sandhya Bordewekar.
RETURN TO RHYTHM
The 14th edition of the India Art Fair, with its extended sprawl of galleries, witnessed a consolidation of energies, feels Aranya.
All Eyes on The Prize
Jasmine Shah Varma gives a round-up of this year's Asia Arts Game Changer Awards India.
KEEPING QUIET AND SPEAKING OUT
The Whitney Biennial 2022 is only partially successful in addressing forms of control and exclusion present in American society and life, observes Rohini Iyengar.