#atul bhalla

[bossymarmalade]

-  Atul Bhalla, “Leap from Panchganga” (2015)

[juliakohn]

On Atul Bhalla and Water

Atul Bhalla’s fascination with water really stuck with me. I, too, often fixate on water, but mainly for other reasons. I’ve always been interested in both physics and circles. I remember taking physics in high school and learning about waves—the unit captivated me and heavily influenced my own art. I began drawing wave patterns and optical illusions, and started doing my own research on the tide and its connection to physics to fuel my own personal interest. I also began working with water to alter the way colors looked and to change the texture of the paper I used. As for circles, I am not sure why I am so drawn to them. Maybe because they are fully complete. Maybe because they are, by nature, perfect. Circles are also found in water—when I was younger, I loved to throw things into water just to see the rings that would form.

What I find interesting about my own fixation on water as well as Bhalla’s is how both show just how intersectional and intriguing water is. We both fixate on it for different reasons—mine due to personal fascination and aesthetics, and his due to environmental and social issues. We also both include this interest in our art—I do so by utilizing water physically and integrating wave patterns into my work, and him by depicting items found in water and photographing himself immersed in it to show the environmental and social struggles related to it. It is amazing how one thing can truly have an impact in so many different ways to different people.

Posted 12/11/2020

[juliakohn]

Atul Bhalla, On the Edge of the Sea, latex print on fabric, 20 x 35 x 21 feet, 2019.

Posted 12/10/2020

[juliakohn]

Atul Bhalla, Nothing Reached Home, wooden construction, 5 x 4 x 6 feet, 2009.

Posted 12/10/2020

[priskademetria]

Prameya Art Foundation on Facebook Watch

The artistic oeuvre of Atul Bhalla is anchored in a discourse that scrutinises the role of history and memory in the creation of the present....

[priskademetria]

Memory in Both Water and Art: A Response to Atul Bhalla

  Much like with most artists that I first come into contact with, whether it be through a book, a video, a gallery viewing, or a seminar, I try my best to remember who they are with elements of their work- even if my memory isn’t the best. Looking at Bhalla’s work, I thought to myself that I would only remember his work with water and perhaps the photos of himself in potentially dangerous situations. However, this wasn’t the case; what stuck with me even more than just his work were his descriptions of the water, how important it is both in a life spectrum as well as a political one. It shouldn’t be this way, but access to clean, drinkable water has become political in a sense. 

  In his work Wash/Water/Blood seen below....

  Bhalla constructs a representation of intimacy through water and memory. In his discussion, he talked about how when water is taken from a glass where a flower had once stood, the water retains some of the pigment found within the petals. While this seems like a non sequitur, could it be that it reacts the same way to us? To our hands? Even if pigment is not what the water retains, as melanin is difficult to extract with water alone, would it be impossible to believe that humanity’s essence is kept in the water? It’s already been confirmed that DNA (often with saliva or remains of skin) can be kept in water and it’s been used to solve crime countless times; yet, could there be something a little more sentimental to this? 

  Corresponding to the manner we speak of water with, is it just as alive as we are? Perhaps not in a biological definition, because that is completely untrue, but in the most magical definition. In the same manner that we talk about water’s actions mirroring people, can we give it that same personification with memory? I think so. At least, that’s what I think now that I’ve experienced Atul Bhalla’s art.

[lindy-liu]

[southasiancontemporary]

Atul Bhalla Yudhisthra Washing Single channel video production 2011 7min 45sec