Breathing on Mirrors

A two time nominee for the Sotheby’s Prize for Contemporary Art and a woman who adds minimalist but an emotional theatrical effect to her confined art, Anju Dodiya is renowned for her contemporary self portraits.

On this #SlowArtDay, let us dedicate some more time to analyze Anju Dodiya's recent solo show at Chemould Prescott Road.

Rehearsal for an Apocalypse, 2018 © Photo: Courtesy of Kochi Biennale Foundation

Returning to Chemould Prescott Road after hiatus of 8 long years, Dodiya presents a beautiful, thought provoking and a mysterious series of works titled “Breathing on Mirrors”. Her previous solo show was Erasure, way back in 2012.

The mystery of the fog while breathing on a mirror is a metaphorical extension of introspection and exploration of the uncertain and the unexplored truth.

This show title reminds of a verse quoted in the King James Version of the Bible, 1 Corinthians Chap 13 verse 12:

"For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part;

but then shall I know even as also I am known."

(Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity.)

Decoding the Plot:

“Breathing on Mirrors” offers an insight into the theatrical emotions that run in Dodiya’s mind. This show offers an amalgamation of a pictorial build-up, shaped by ambiguity, awkward gentleness, and layered intricacies. An ongoing but undisclosed story line is hidden beneath each of her strong works. Dodiya continually creates her own legendary feminine portraits that are often self-disruptive autobiographies.

‘Breathing on Mirrors allows for an up-close analysis of several occurrences, both, empirical and ideational; she continues to be an omniscient narrator who draws attention to the protagonist of a plot, which then follows multiple characters and narrative arcs, zooming in and out of a story. There are curtains, props, costumes and even the spotlights - the entire stagecraft transforming the surfaces into a proscenium that mediates between the real and the illusory.

These pictorial references are selected from varied sources such as Renaissance paintings, world cinema, Japanese Ukiyo-e prints, newspaper photographs, Indian miniatures, and lately, Instagram. An intriguing dialogue with the artwork pushes the viewer to decode the plot.'

(L-R) Archane's Walk ; Ancestors , 2019 ( Watercolor and charcoal on fabric combine stretched on padded board with collage element)

One may sense the fear that lingers in her paintings, but cannot miss the strength displayed to encounter the demons. For instance, birds appear repeatedly in artworks like Ancestors, Studio (with Pheonix), and Arachne’s walk, a symbol of fragility and freedom.

(L-R) Target; Daphne, 2019 (Watercolor on charcoal on unbleached cotton fabric stretched on padded board)

“I am interested in the victim, the suffering person!”

Anju Dodiya

The artwork titled ‘Target’ presents violent motifs, where pencils assume the role of arrows that pierce the body, yet the body withstands the pain. While in Daphne, of Greek Mythology, the branches of the tree assume the same role. However, the girl’s body still holds a steady symphonic gait. Varied human forms and faces appear, often radiating pain, and in the same breath, vigor.

As a viewer, the artwork titled Daphne takes me back to the classic Indian mythology, Mahabharata, when Bhisma Pitamah lay on his death bed of arrows in war against Arjuna. It conveys a sense of the tormenting pain that Bhisma suffered for 58 days during war until his last breathe.

(L-R) Supernatural; Untitled with Chandelier , 2019 (Water color and charcoal on paper)

Dodiya has always drawn inspiration from the western artists such as Piero della Francesca and Giotto di Bondone. Their artworks are a mirror reflection of Italy during pre- renaissance period. Their figuratives are simple yet surreal, conveying extreme emotional intensity and depth, thus justifying the subject matter – the story of Christ.

Materiality and Emotions:

Installation Shot

Materials form an integral part of of Anju’s works and add an allegorical yet literary element to them. 'Mattress as a base has a seemingly soft cushioned surface that comes undone as an object upon which stains, marks, lines, and color interact with each other to create a conversation that is, both, intimate and tense, all at once.'

Anju’s art is rooted in the figurative and carries an intense emotional charge; these works are like an abbreviation of her intrinsic monologues. Her artworks enliven glimpses of poems by T.S Elliot, Rainer Maria Rilke and Sylvia Plath.

Other echoes Inhabit the Garden, 2020 (Framed archival digital prints on Hahnemuhle bamboo paper, with painted fabric mounts)

“The digital prints in this exhibition are named after a line from a TS Eliot work. It’s got to do with the passing of time, about mortality and the mundane, and is connected to the installation.”

Anju Dodiya

Anju Dodiya’s female protagonist becomes her product of utmost strength, vigor and emotions. Stauncly endorsing feminism, Dodiya’s female figurines depict a strong chiaroscuro, draped in robes as well as an epitome of endurance that faces extremities of life against all odds. This strong exhibit leaves an everlasting and a thought provoking impact that makes the viewer want to re-visit the show and explore the intricacies of the making and the unmaking in each piece by Dodiya.

Image © Chemould Prescott Road & Anju Dodiya