#pushpamala

[standingatthefence]

Jyoti Bhatt | A young Pushpamala N. during a performance at the Fine Arts Fair, Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda,1983.

[standingatthefence]

Pushpamala N. and Clare Arni, The Ethnographic Series, 2000-2004, Sepia-toned gelatin prints

[standingatthefence]

Pushpamala N. and Clare Arni,The Ethnographic Series: 2000-2004 Sepia-toned Gelatin print

[shreyaajmani]

Quantifying a Memory with Pushpamala N.

Shreya Ajmani: How did you shift from sculptures to photography?

Pushpamala N.: I started working with photo performance around '96. It started off as a light-hearted thing — like a joke for the show. But then I really started getting interested in the medium. I began doing these photo romances, recreating historical and existing images. I did many series, projects, and worked for about 20 years. I still continue to work with all these forms: video, photo performance, also videos where I act. I've also begun doing live performances. I haven't done many. I'm not that comfortable with live performances.

Excerpt from Pushpamala N’s interview.

Text by Shreya Ajmani

[standingatthefence]

Photoshoot of “A Walk in the Park”, 1980, Jyoti Bhatt

A Walk in the Park Part II

A Walk in the Park was a short skit presented at the farewell programme of K.G. Subramanyan in 1980 at the Faculty of Fine Arts, The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda. The skit was created and performed by Pushpamala N., Ajay Desai, Hans Kaushik, Satish Bana, Walter D' Souza, Yunus Khimani, Rasna Bhushan, and Satish Monabhai Patel, all of whom were students at the Faculty of Fine Arts, except for Satish Monabhai Patel.

Pushpamala recalls that the skit was inspired by the American dance company Pilobolus, as it incorporated absurd and mime-like choreographed actions, and each actor would play several characters. Ajay Desai had designed the acoustics for the play by creating backstage sound effects on a mike through vocal resonation and percussion. These photographs are from Jyoti Bhatt’s collection of 35mm negatives.

[bombayelectric]

the process of subversion // pushpamala at bombay electric

[bombayelectric]

femininity + feminism // pushpamala