“It just came into my lap,” says artist Seema Kohli excitedly. She has all the reasons to be happy about. After all, a concept that she had developed way back in 2014 has finally taken a physical form and is grabbing eyeballs at an open space in NSIC grounds in Okhla where Amazon India Fashion Week in going on. The world of glamour is an unlikely venue to mount an installation that deals with the idea of identity, but Seema is unperturbed. For the Delhi-based artist, the concept of her installation, ‘Tatvamasi — The Other Self’ and the Fashion Design Council of India’s sensibilities have aligned at one thought, which is the idea of celebration. “When I developed this concept, it centred on the idea of celebrating oneself and the other. So, when Sunil Sethi approached me with the concept of celebrating 30 years of FDCI, our ideas just converged,” says Seema.
The boundaries that define creative zones are porous for Seema who feels the marriage between art and fashion shouldn’t be looked in binaries, but as creative fields that seamlessly merge with one another. “You can’t take one out from the other.”
The installation consists of a prism of glass mirrors placed in a pyramid form, creating many images at the same time of a spectator standing in front of the installation. Hence, it recognises and celebrates the duality of one’s image and personality and also of accepting the other. This, Seema points out, was the most important thing to ensure because the fundamental idea of the concept relies on “I am you and you are me.”
“It is based on Vedic beej mantra and elaborates on the basic concept of seeing one’s own self in the other. The concept delves deeper into the idea of interchangeable identities. The moment we expand our identities, we become the other,” says the 57-year-old.
Spiritual undertones
The spiritual and philosophical undertones have been central to her artistic practice of 35 years. Having a sound knowledge of Greek mythology, Sikh teachings, European philosophers and Sufi culture, she has used art as a vehicle to interpret and develop an understanding of these varied subjects. Her preoccupation with women as pivotal figures has also given her the status of being a “feminist artist”. In fact, her recent work, ‘The Golden Womb’ or the ‘Hiranya Garbha Koham’ reaffirmed her inclination towards addressing women issues. But Seems doesn’t want to be boxed in such definitions. “My work is more gender feminist because I view everything around me as feminine,” she says.
But her installation doesn’t bear any resemblance to her favourite symbol. It, in fact, has a global resonance because the installation is an attempt to look deep within and initiate a conversation about ‘oneness’ in times like today when questions of identity are at the core of universal discourse.
“It is so ironic that nothing much has changed in three years since the concept of this installation first came to my mind. In fact, things have become bad from worse. The work aims to ask the question that at a time when we are talking about our space, why aren’t we considering about other people’s space?”
“What we are not understanding is one can’t exist without other, so we have to co-exist and live peacefully,” she adds.
With over 30 solo shows under her belt, Seema has never shied away from experimenting with different mediums. Her impressive resume boasts of her engagement with mediums like painting, murals, installations, experiential performances, films, and sculptures. “It is important for an artist to keep on breaking shells. I like this idea of venturing into unknown space and dimension and create something different. This kind of intrepidness has helped me break my own boundaries,” she says.
“Every person should have this unsatiated quest to know more. To push boundaries is important to excel,” she adds.
While she has always used art to express and highlight concerns, Seema points out that an artist is neither a messenger of peace nor vocal about issues like politicians. “As artists, we can only share what we feel. So, art becomes an important medium to start conversations around issues.”
