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Email PageRed Earth - Vanishing Ice
April 17, 2008- May 10, 2008
Reception: April 17, 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Jyoti Duwadi
Sundaram Tagore Gallery
547 W 27th StSUNDARAM TAGORE GALLERY is pleased to unveil works by Nepali artist Jyoti Duwadi, in Red Earth-Vanishing Ice, which opens with a cocktail reception on this Thursday, April 17 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. The exhibition runs through May 10, 2008.
Duwadi’s first exhibition in New York City, the site-specific, multimedia installation weaves together drawings and paintings using earth pigments, turmeric and pine tar with sculptures made from copper and brass vessels, beeswax, and bamboo mats to create a space where nature and culture seamlessly merge. Curator Sundaram Tagore says, “This exhibition is a unique thing for New Yorkers to see. Duwadi transforms raw materials from the environment and functional objects used daily in Nepal into recontextualized works of art; he creates a multi-layered poetic space intended to stimulate a range of emotions and interpretations.”
Tagore adds that, “Given the geopolitical situation in Nepal, this exhibition is very incredibly significant. This is the only Hindu kingdom in the world; it is also situated between two of the world’s biggest powers, India and China.”
One of the main components of the installation was inspired by the gallery's exposed sprinkler system. A block of ice, suspended from the water pipe, slowly melts on a Narmada River rock nestled within a sculptural assemblage of handmade copper cauldrons, brass vessels, and wooden containers with flower pedals floating on water collected from Kathmandu and New York.
Together with the flame of an oil lamp, Duwadi interprets contrasting states of matter – hot and cold, solid and liquid, light and shadow. A twelve by fifteen-foot long, draping canvas forms a sensual, theatrical backdrop, dramatically painted by the artist with the velvety black of Guggul, an important Ayurvedic medicine, and deep earth pigments - reds, purples and ochres - personally gathered and prepared. In his sculptures, paintings and drawings, Duwadi incorporates natural materials known for their healing properties.
Through this work, Duwadi suggests water’s association with ritual and purification; its scarcity as a natural resource; the flow of the Hudson River, one block from the gallery; and the glacial meltdown in the Himalayas and around the world caused by global warming. In Sounds of Color, another component of the installation, Duwadi integrates beeswax and carved palm frond sculptures, red earth, white sand, powdered pigments and seven brass singing bowls from Kathmandu. Visitors are invited to compose soothing tones by ringing the bowls with a mallet. Introducing sound, scent and touch into the work, the artist provides visitors with an interactive experience.
Jyoti Duwadi, born into a family of poets and writers, was exposed to art and literature while growing up in Darjeeling, Varanasi, and Kathmandu. He came to the United States in 1971 and lived in Southern California where he began making and exhibiting multi-media work that synthesized his South Asian experiences with western Modern and Contemporary art. The artist has since traveled extensively, incorporating ideas, images and materials that contribute to a vibrant and diverse body of work. Moving freely from one media to another -- sculpture, painting, video, installation, and digital art -- Duwadi maintains an intimate relationship to nature and the cultures of both North America and Nepal. The artist currently divides time between his studio in Chapel Hill, North Carolina and Kathmandu, Nepal, where he pioneered public art installations that address political and environmental issues.
Books and DVDs related to artists in this show
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