: Artist C. Unnikrishnan is constructing the contemporary history of Kochi, brick by brick. Literally, that is.
At 23 years, the youngest artist roped in for the forthcoming Kochi Muziris Biennale from December 12 has the overwhelming task of chronicling the daily existence of the city, weaving it into a narrative comprising an imagined past and a fanciful future.
A fresh fine arts graduate, Unnikrishnan caught the eye of the biennale curator Jitish Kallat when he showcased his work in a group show at the College of Fine Arts in Thrissur.
He created what looked like a diary of the place with engravings and paintings on clay bricks.
“What I’m going to present for the biennale is an extension of the same work. For the past three months, I have been scouting the streets of Fort Kochi and the mainland. I paint and carve on the bricks my impression of what I observe. It’s my diary on the life of the city, which is not limited to its present. It also captures the change taking place with each passing day,” says Unnikrishnan.
The stack of painted bricks in a corner of his place of stay thematically deconstructs the city for you.
The work presents a mishmash of everything about the city—its people, marine life, colours, culture, superstitions, household wares, market place, artefacts, relics and the like. A native of Pezhumpara at Nemmara near Palakkad.
He has taken part in a group show hosted by the State Lalitha Kala Akademi besides a show, ‘Hanging Terraces’ curated by Kavitha Balakrishnan in Chennai.
