Cities in Flux, Photographic Journeys in Urban India – Exhibition

Cities in Flux, Photographic Journeys in Urban India / Le Temps des Villes Indiennes, Trajectoires Photographiques presents the works of ten artists of different ages and origins (India, Japan, Germany and France), brought together for their contribution to the visual dialogue on contemporary urban India. Featuring a wide variety of photographic practices, they have engaged with the complexity of the urban experience in today’s India, casting their gaze upon the changing landscapes of Indian cities, which have assimilated the creative destruction of capitalistic urban development at a scale unseen before the liberalization of the Indian economy in 1991.

These artists’ journeys through Indian cities speak of the growing sense of alienation generated by u rbanization, a historical process with deep ramifications in every sphere of society. The economic, social and environmental challenges faced by India’s cities are echoed in their singular experiences, resulting in works that speak of loss and distress as much as of a longing for a home and a search of familiarity.

The difficulty of the relationship to contemporary urban spaces emerges as a common thread uniting the photographers and building bridges between the Indian and the foreign photographers’ works. The diversity of approaches presented, ranging from flâneurism in decayed spaces, to collage and self-portraiture, underlines the necessity to approach the urban as a social fact rather than a physical and geographical entity.

Offering to consider urban life in all its complexity, these photographers present sometimes antagonistic views of Indian cities, oscillating between sheer fascination and anguish. The themes of attachment and the human quest for beauty run through the works, sometimes hidden behind layers of abandonment and despair, sometimes jumping at the viewer with a vitality characteristic of India’s streets.

Photographed in the middle of the night, in the early hours of the morning or recomposed in the studio, these works give a glimpse of the multifaceted experience of contemporary India. They bear witness to the uncertainty surrounding India’s futures, at a time when the country has announced its arrival onto the international stage while confounding itself in domestic troubles.

Date: from October 11 to October 27, 2018
Venue: School of Architecture Paris-Malaquais, 1 rue Jacques Callot, 75006 Paris
Organizers: Curated by Arthur Crestani in collaboration with Thierry Mandoul, co-produced by Territoires Visuels and the ENSA Paris-Malaquais
Artists: Ravi Agarwal (India), Alien Waters; Chandan Gomes (India), Invisible Cities; Atul Bhalla (India), Yamuna Works; Yamashita Takahiro (Japan), New Order; Avinash Veeraraghavan (India), I Love My India; Anita Khemka (India), Self-Portraits; Verena Jaekel (Germany), Delhi Transport Portrait; Shiho Kito (Japan), Pikari; Philippe Calia (France), Indian Topographies; François Daireaux (France), Million Bangles Firozabad
A free guided tour will be given by Arthur Crestani on Oct. 27 at 2.30 PM., followed by a closing ceremony till 6:30pm (last entrance at 6pm)
See full Program: Cities In Flux; Le Temps Des Villes Indiennes