anata dhanu visual Haiku assemblages: post1

Anata believes her art is only located in her considered conceptual process and not in her compelling 3D assemblages. By conceptual process I mean that she takes considerable time to contemplate her collected objects, assemble them through artistic composition and draw them spontaneously in order to prompt philosophical reflection and reinforce their mysterious titles and status.

Drawing on short excerpts from literary sources, often poems or haikus, Dhanu creates a dialogue between the text and the assemblages, sometimes bringing them together in a simple photographic printing process called ‘cyanotype’.

Both cyanotypes and 3D assemblages evoke things of the past. The weathered objects are transformed into strange, graceful structures laden with nostalgic and melancholic connotations.

Dhanu’s private creative world connects to her aesthetic awareness of the impermanence and evanescence of life. Her modest approach to identifying herself as an artist is mirrored in the unpretentious simplicity of her work and how it is humbly displayed.

These objects were not originally designed for artistic purpose; they have been chosen ‘site specific’ at Kingsdown beach on regular walks. Dhanu seeks out ostensibly crude objects which have been washed up by the tides and left to corrode on the shore: Fabric, canvas, leather, wood, metal, stone, glass, plastic are even picked for their texture, colour and form. All these components are with her 3D assemblages Dhanu elevates these simple fragments to a personal special status: sometimes they tell moving personal and family stories; other times they evoke tragic world events. Occasionally they are just about pleasing forms and textures brought together or about balance.

Her assemblages could be interpreted as a critique of the dominance of the slick and seamless 21^st century design and technology. They are reminiscent of a Japanese aesthetic which coaxed melancholic beauty out of the ordinary. There is also a strong link with the tradition of Dada and that of Objects trouves displayed in The Art of Assemblage exhibition of 1961 at the New York Museum of Modern Art.

by Kati saqui 2011

6 Jun 2011

post1