discoveries around my house

Prints by Savitha Ravi

Medium: Cyanotype on Intaglio print out of Tetra pack
Size: 18 inches X 12 inches
No.of editions: 2
Year: 2021

“Space is everything for time ceases to quicken memory ” (Yi-Fu Tuan).

What is an ideal home? We move from one place to another, always planning the next home. Everyone dreams of ahome which, in a way, is the ‘ideal’ to them. This ‘ideal home’ has details, very minute details. Each time one relocates or renovates, one tries little by little, to bring together the elements of this ideal, hoping to mould the ideal out of the current.

One is rarely content with what they have.
The desire for more triggers development.Every day the items in the to-get or to-have list grows despite older items getting crossed off.

For me, a place is something which remains and survives for a longer period and its architecture has so many significant stories that inhabit it, that create it, that help identify with it.

My work is about the creation of space.
Through my work, specific ordeals and memories associated with that place, space, and a specific time have been represented. Architectural structures and spaces have intrigued me for quite a while. The patterns of repetition and reiteration within these structures captivates me. These repetitive patterns are the tools I use to create a specific space. An imaginary space which I wish to be a part of in reality; a space that changes during its construction as I change with the passage of time.

My work is always devoid of direct human presence. Space is the permanent structure.The human presence and their events are alluded to just as different spaces trigger different memories and emotions when we pass through them.

Through my process, I attempt to add yet another layer to the textured histories of these structures.

And to archive their memory.

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editor's note

Volume 10

contact | shadow | fringe

I’ve been reflecting on the theme for our tenth volume, a lovely milestone that coincides serendipitously with the warehouse’s tenth year, and how it feels apt for the moment we find ourselves in currently. The theme straddles a threshold. The movement from this side to the far side. It isn’t inherently accompanied by an emotion. And yet, I feel it suggests a sense of hopefulness. 

This isn’t in a vacuum but is influenced by two events that concern themselves with a tremendous threshold: our atmosphere and the expanse beyond it. I am referring to the successful flyby mission around the moon by the Artemis II and the release of the film “Project Hail Mary” (adapted from Andy Weir’s novel of the same name). These two events, coinciding in this manner, serve less as random happenstance and more as a reminder, as Carl Sagan said, “The Cosmos is within us. We are made of star-stuff.” A reminder that everything out there, is also everything in here. It serves as a reminder for hope that as we resume our exploration of the darkest depths of the universe, we must take that strength to step forward from our own personal shadows.

Shadows can be freeing. There is comfort in creating, expressing, and working without scrutiny or pressure or expectation. It has potential for great freedom, movement, and discovery. However, when the driving force isn’t exploration then it can be crippling and lead to paralysis. In those moments, “coincidental” events like these can be arresting and provide a sense of hope that the next step is all that matters. One step at a time soon becomes many past an imposing threshold. As we gather momentum, pressure is bound to build. It is here, with changed circumstances, that the intention must persevere. Learning the rules, allows the impact of breaking them to feel that much sweeter, but that isn’t necessary. Acting from pure instinct allows for an innate expression to present itself. It is balancing this, instinct versus experience, that proves vital to take experience into one’s stride with child-like instinct and intention.

Our focus, at imprint and G5A, on independent stories allows this freedom. It is something we work to preserve so that the experience of ten volumes and ten years, respectively, does not weigh us down but lifts us up through the shadows and into the expanse. This is not easy but it is simple. When you default to curiosity and wonder, it isn’t a matter of ‘if’ but ‘when’.

We’re excited for Volume 10 and everything it will hold.