Just as people walk into the Vidyaranya School, they’re welcomed by a huge art installation titled The Death of a River. Made up of sand, charcoal and lime powder, the installation by Avani Rao Gandra tries to capture the polluted, murky waters of the river now, as if instantly reminding visitors of the gravity of an urgent situation. The interactive work allows visitors to walk in and around the installation.
The Death of a River is one among the artistic installations around the theme ‘incomplete city’ that was displayed at a two-day event by Hyderabad Urban Lab, called Do Din. The event brought together seven artists from the city, Avani Rao Gandra, Satish Mandalaparthy, Archana Rajguru, Sweta Chandra, Debabrata Biswas, Angali Raghavendar and Pavan Kumar.
Elaborating on her installation, Avani says, “It addresses the death of River Musi, which flows into Hyderabad. The once gushing Musi had replenished trees and all kinds of lifeforms that it touched. Gardens of paradise were built around it, celebrating its shimmering beauty. Its water was a life-enhancer, and the city was built around its gentle flow. But now the river remains in a state of apathy, as a reminder of its people’s disregard for it and the environment and their greed and ingratitude towards nature. I’ve symbolised its distressed nature in the form of a wounded snake ready to strike back in vengeance. The interactive aspect of the art will enable visitors to be a part of the whole initiative.”
Similarly, using abstractionism, artist Satish Mandalaparthy’s Work in Progress People is a sculpted depiction of people, who with their differences reflect commonalities that make up for each other’s differences. “It’s these incomplete people who come together to form the large (incomplete) city. According to me, these inadequacies are not a symbol of anything lacking but one that helps a people to co-exist,” says Satish.
Connecting people
Archana Rajguru’s work This too Shall Pass delves into a sense of belief. “Every day, there’s something new that happens in the city, leaving a mark on its people. But as time passes, those incidents slowly get pushed into oblivion, making way for new ones. The swirling blue lines with paper boats in my artwork indicate the creation of a new generation, and the red circle with the paper mould masks depicts people and incidents,” explains Archana.
Interestingly, artist Sweta Chandra, who’s created her mirror-based work, was inspired by Hyderabad’s growth as a city over the last three decades. Titled Life Is only a Reflection of What We Allow Ourselves to See..., her installation attempts to showcase some of the city’s changes with the use of a mirror. “The reflections act as both inclusive and reflective of the image of those who live in the city as well as the city,” Sweta elaborates.
Reflecting a similar thought through his interactive artwork The Conscious City, artist Pavan Kumar expresses how everyone strives to be the sun to lighten up someone’s life, even though they may be more effective as the moon that brightens the darkest hours. “My art installation, which is shaped as a circle filled with tea-light candles — some of which are lit and some are not — attempts to encourage people to stop and think about their role in the city,” concludes Pavan.
