Others & I: Tales from Growing Up

'Others & I: Tales from Growing Up' is an attempt to bridge the acceptance gap between queer and heteronormative sections of society through the device of the personal story. The 10 pieces on display at the first edition pulled from artists' own personal stories or individual stories of those they had interacted with. Curator Shaunak Mahbubani worked with each of the artists to add interactive and relatable layers to the presentations of the works, breaking some of the boundaries between the spectator and the installation.

The show was first hosted at 1Shanthi Road Studio/Gallery in Bangalore, and supported by the Namma Pride Fund (November 2016). Parts of the show have also travelled to Poorna Learning Center in Jakkur, Bangalore as an introductory experience to start a conversation with the students there exploring alternate ideas of gender and sexuality.

Showcased Artists:

Abhijeet Rao
Anusha Raichur
Anusha Ravishankar
Avril Stormy Unger
Chan Arun Narendra
Debasmita Das
Kanika Agarwal
Mayank Chauhan
Shanizam
Vanika & Suvrita

Curator's Note

The womb is our transition between the warm comfort of oneness, and the harsh separation of inhabiting our human bodies. This marks the beginning of our chase for connectedness. We hone our identities, factionalising into smaller and smaller communities, forever seeking that all-enveloping sense of belonging.

‘Others & I’ invites you to reflect on this illusion of separateness. While navigating stories told by the artists, look at not only the differences in each perspective, but the underlying commonalities of our human condition(ing). The elements of a forest seem rather loosely connected to an unacquainted eye, only revealing their true entanglement on study of the massive networks below ground and reaching the sky. Our entanglements are most vividly viewed within, using the seeds of stories to dissolve the separation of our sphere into the centre of our brows.

It’s incomplete to talk about separation and connectedness, without examining our privilege in doing so. Armed with a partial armour, do we sometimes hide behind its protection, denouncing and propagating, as per our convenience, this separation.

Words and thoughts will create ripples, if only within your own mind. Be inclusive. Be kind.

Chan Arun Narendra's Self Portrait of a Transman: Achiving the subtexts of Inhabiting Home(s)
With an archival photography undertaking lasting over 3 years, Chan explores their gender identity through the spaces and surfaces of the homes they've inhabited. Drawing on chance reminders of embodied confusion from reflective surfaces and distorted identities from dream fragments, amonst other subthemes, Chan combines photography and text enabling us to unfold moments from the self-discovery of an urban transman.

Avril Stormy Unger's Mostly A, Sometimes B
Avril collates personal experiences and collected anecdotes into an deeply sensitive audio narrative embodying the fears and frustrations of an asexual partner in a intimate relationship. Her accompanying arrangement of mannequin parts brings visual depth through its language of the covered private and uncovered personal. Primarily practicing as a performance artist, this piece tackling a largely undiscussed part of the sexuality spectrum is one of her first installation works.

Mayank Chauhan's Spectrum
In his 9 part self-portrait series, Mayank Chauhan draws a line between our 21st century binaries of masculine and feminine, expounding the shades of gray that lie in between. Inviting the viewer into the conversation, the artist asks the viewer-turned-participant to use this current moment to bring into consciousness their historic understandings of gender with the question 'How do you fee right now?'

Anusha Ravishankar's His Alcove
Exploring ways of bringing nostalgia into the gallery space, Anusha plays with an assemblage of found objects and interactions to tell the story of D. She pulls in a message of hope with an underdog story of a young man who used to design garments for this sister's dolls, going on now to start his own clothes label.

Vanika Sharma and Suvrita's Redesigned, Renovated and Refurbished
Embarking on a journey of self-exploration, Vanika and Suvrita challenge the conventions of gender performance and gender conforming clothing in public spaces across Delhi.

Abhijeet Rao's Cry, Baby!

Kanika Agarwals's Inside Mess

Anusha Raichurs's Queer in India

Anusha Raichurs's LGBT: An Illsustrated Blueprint
The last section of the show explored the forms of taking this dialog into spaces where it could create long lasting impact. Children growing up see and realize these gender/sexuality norms without learning about alternate ways of thinking. Taking this conversation into classroom and homes, while keeping the tone engaging and non-academic, can create real snowballing change in the way we perceive our differences. Anusha's LGBT Colouring Books offer an example of how these subjects could be taken to young children in a normalising manner, making them part of the growing child's accepted vocabulary.

Shanizam's Save Changes
Shanizam's take on the 2D Puzzle box is another conversation started about fluid gender identities and roles flipped into a playful setup. The form appeals to the inquisitive child as well as the nostalgic adult, creating a common dialog point to broach a complicated subject.

Special Thanks to
Suresh Jayaram
Hrishikesh Pawar
Romal Laisam
Dhruv Kapoor