Photographs are both windows to another time and place and mirrors of our selves and our culture. When we first discovered an intriguing box of old photographs and negatives at an estate sale near Chicago, we were struck by the beauty, craftsmanship and sensitivity of these old images from India. There appeared to be a mutual respect, a cultural awareness unusual for the time. We wondered who might have taken the photos.
Most people today experience photographs on little screens on their mobile phones or computers. But not that long ago, photographs were physical objects—printed on paper, put in albums, touched. There is something magical about the fact that a person held these little pieces of paper 70 years ago. That presence remains… and had the power to bring us halfway around the world to unravel a mystery.
It was 1945, at the end of World War II, before independence and partition, after a devastating famine. It took several years of research before we determined that an American soldier based in West Bengal took the photos. We still don’t know why.
Inspired by his work, we created new art pieces ourselves in response. We soon realized that contemporary Indian artists might be similarly enthralled. Perhaps we could open a dialogue, exploring the ways in which American and Indian perspectives might vary. Perhaps cultures teach us to see.
Funded initially through a Fulbright-Nehru award, we came to Kolkata and were fortunate to find ten contemporary Indian artists in various disciplines who shared our excitement. Each artist interpreted these images from long ago in their own unique way, shaped by their personal artistic vision and by the cultural net that envelops us all.
This exhibit is an aesthetic and cross-cultural exploration of historic imagery, a celebration of the universal power of photography to elicit memory and spark conversation. Following the Box is both a mystery story and a visual dialogue between Americans and Indians over time, ultimately a celebration of the power of art.
Most people today experience photographs on little screens on their mobile phones or computers. But not that long ago, photographs were physical objects—printed on paper, put in albums, touched. There is something magical about the fact that a person held these little pieces of paper 70 years ago. That presence remains… and had the power to bring us halfway around the world to unravel a mystery.
It was 1945, at the end of World War II, before independence and partition, after a devastating famine. It took several years of research before we determined that an American soldier based in West Bengal took the photos. We still don’t know why.
Inspired by his work, we created new art pieces ourselves in response. We soon realized that contemporary Indian artists might be similarly enthralled. Perhaps we could open a dialogue, exploring the ways in which American and Indian perspectives might vary. Perhaps cultures teach us to see.
Funded initially through a Fulbright-Nehru award, we came to Kolkata and were fortunate to find ten contemporary Indian artists in various disciplines who shared our excitement. Each artist interpreted these images from long ago in their own unique way, shaped by their personal artistic vision and by the cultural net that envelops us all.
This exhibit is an aesthetic and cross-cultural exploration of historic imagery, a celebration of the universal power of photography to elicit memory and spark conversation. Following the Box is both a mystery story and a visual dialogue between Americans and Indians over time, ultimately a celebration of the power of art.