We are at the stage of de-constructing of what we did in India. Looking through the video material filmed during the project, we are revisiting those three weeks; we are re-thinking everything that happened. Leaving Kolkata, we knew it was only a stage of the project that we left behind, that another one will start once we look at things from our homes in London. When we were in India we were impressionable, perceiving things in a sensual way, everything was new and there was so much happening around. The way we thought and behaved was influenced by what was happening around us, was altered by it. However, it was also important to allow ourselves to take in as much as we could, to absorb the atmosphere of the place, to meet as many people as we could, as all those conversations, trips to local markets or wonderings around were crucial in understanding the context of the palce we were working in and understanding where Patua come from. Operating in this unfamiliar environment also made us aware of certain mechanics in our thinking and behavioural processes. We were, therefore, better equipped to see things without certain set of filters (cultural, stereotypical)
We definitely became acutely aware of our working processes. In particular,how to structure the project in such a way that enabled a collaborative practise between two groups without a shared verbal language, a dramatically different art education and professional practise. It was very important to us that we weren't just facilitators or technicians so we had to try to define our roles to make sure that we could fulfill them.
ReplyDeleteOn reflection, the fact that we strived for this ideal collaborative practise whilst we were in Kolkata means we should be examining ideas of authorship and ownership as we continue to develop the work. Its a complicated subject and one that would benefit from some input from the Patua, but there access to the internet is limited due to resources ie. internet, electricity, time. So for the large part future developments of the work will have to work on presumptions and speculations- something we have tried to avoid in the past.
Future posts will need to address these issues. Hopefully with some input from some of the Patua. We should draft a series of questions and see if we can get a response.
I'm not sure we were better equipped to see things without cultural or stereotypical filters. Do you think you could expand on this a bit? I think it's an interesting point. I think working in unfamiliar environments is often rather conducive to a reliance on stereotypes. We step from one set of filters into another. Romanticising and idealising some aspects of what we encounter and criticising others. We have less knowledge of the new context and have to form impressions rapidly.
ReplyDeleteDuring our first visit in 2009 I felt my usual frame of reference had fallen away and become relatively insignificant in the context of making work in India and the project, but I didn't have such a profoundly unsettling experience this year.
Is it not possible that we actually became more aware of 'cultural and stereotypical filters'. Speaking for myself, I do not have the impression that 'cultural and stereotypical ideas' are fixed. Perhaps these ideas are fluid, constantly formed and often renegotiated? I do not pretend to see without their influences, even stereotypical. I feel that it is not necessarily unfamiliarity as such, but the exposure to a different culture that allowed us to become aware of certain mechanics and behavioral processes in our thinking.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Niels. We became gradually more aware of the specific circumstances we were working in. Therefore, less susceptible to the stereotypes we could identify, but simultaneously we might have been seduced by others.
ReplyDeleteTilly, I don't think you can ever get away from cultural filters, but I think after being in Kolkata in 2009 and having had a year to think about what had happened during that trip, we were better equipped to work there in 2010. We became more aware of the actual situation we were working in – of Banglanatak's objectives, the Patua’s way of working, Kolkata’s rhythm etc. However, once we started working on site in 2010 certain questions kept coming back and we had to continually revise our way of working. But that’s probably material for another post...