Two generations after the exultation of Independence and the concurrent horrors of Partition, contemporary Indian photographers reclaim and reappraise the history of colonialism in their country. These artists look closely and critically at historical Indian photography and draw on diverse sources of inspiration. They take matters of history into their own hands, redefining the iconic historical images of India and investigating the complex relationship between traditions of representation and contemporary image-making. The exhibition will include works by Raqs Media Collective, Gauri Gill, Nandan Ghiya, Vivan Sundaram, Pushpamala N., and Annu Palakunnathu Matthew.
Pushpamala N., The Native Types—Yogini (after a 16th-century Deccani painting), 2001. From the project “Native Women of South India: Manners and Customs,” 2000–2004. Chromogenic print on metallic paper, 22 x 17 1/2 in. Collection of Dipti and Rakesh Mathur. © Pushpamala N., 2001 Courtesy of the artist and Nature Morte, New Delhi.
POSTDATE was organized collaboratively by the San Jose Museum of Art and the Ulrich Museum of Art, Wichita State University, Kansas.
