Digital Waste: The Sweet Smell of Burning
The notion behind the series “Digital Waste: The Sweet Smell of Burning” highlights the behavioural issues of taking excessive photographs and a disproportionate exchange of worthless information on various social media platforms. Furthermore, both these behaviours lead to much deeper concerns such as living in the virtual world, instant gratification, detachment from emotionally meaningful relationships and its hypnotic effect on the human mind. The works present these issues metaphorically through photographs, objects and interactive audio-video. The intention of these works is to raise awareness of the current social issues in a subtle yet humorous way.
The photographs and objects primarily use the rejected images. The video work highlights the engagement with meaningless information, at times leading to vocalisation (arm-chair activism) or at other times demonstrating indifference towards various social issues.
Juxtaposing these works together initiates a dialogue, at the same time individual pieces are capable of independently stimulating a thought process.
VIDEO WORK
The F Art of Social Media
The F Art of Social Media, 2018, Single-Channel Video, 16:9, Colour, Sound, 7:16 minute
On average an adult spends 3 hrs a day, translating into 1,095 hrs a year browsing through miscellaneous information on various social media. The Single-channel video, “The F-art of Social Media” uses text available on group chats. It is a satirical attempt to capture the involuntary and to an extent hypnotic physical and mental involvement. The concept is inspired by the abundance of frivolous pieces of information in the form of text on various social media platforms that unintentionally acts as a breeding ground for instant gratification, emotional disconnect, an absence of mindfulness and other behaviours.
SMALL SCULPTURES
To further explore the possibilities and to break the 2-dimensional aspect of the photographs, the rejected photo prints are used to create the objects. These objects are an extension of the photographs and they provide scope for investigating another aspect of digital waste, while still maintaining the element of ambiguity.
The sculpture predominantly uses the paper that is an outcome of “Digital Waste: The Sweet Smell Of Burning” series explorations. Besides being a tool for extending the scope of 2-dimensional works, the small sculptures also provided an opportunity to revisit childhood in a certain way. The shapes are inspired by memories associated with childhood and experiences during the various travels. The physicality of these objects pushes me as well as the viewers to make an association that is beyond what is within the frame.
