Persistence of Memory was a performance installation developed based on the artist’s retrospection of life triggered by the nature of studio space at C340 – Defence Colony in New Delhi, where the residency was held. The confinement to a basement with little natural light, in contrast, lead to delve on a thought of remaining unhinged by the environment.

 

The concept was developed on a personal urge to express the idea of ‘nomadic life’ of the generation who migrate from birthplace to many different temporary homes for the sake of education, employment and sometimes just for a better life. What persists is the memory of every place one lived and that compose together to be segments of time in the span of life. One could visit them at any time and in any order. Memories are dreamlike and are never linear. Hence the basement became an unusual cellar to store the ‘past’ as in they fit.

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The installation was grown over a period of 6 weeks through accumulation of objects and structural additions. It began with a grid measuring 8’x8’ to live within. The cube was rotated once every week for 6 weeks to live on each side. Each side of the cube accumulated objects organically responding to the basic and immediate needs to live inside. Objects used on each side were glued to their surface before moving to the next. The final installation was a cube with all the objects intact on their respective surfaces with a time-lapse video documenting the 6 weeks of living inside the cube.

 

August 2018

Venue: Serendipity Arts Foundation,

C340 – Defence Colony, New Delhi, India

 

December 2018
Venue: Serendipity Arts Festival, Goa, India