In this episode I, Kamayani Sharma, am in conversation with artist Prabhakar Pachpute, among the winners of the Artes Mundi Prize 2020 about his artistry and engagement with coal mining in his native Chandrapur District, Maharashtra. Pachpute "works in an array of mediums and materials including drawing, light, stopmotion animations, sound and sculptural forms. His use of charcoal has a direct connection to his subject matter and familial roots, coal mines and coal miners."
We discuss highlights from 10 years of Prabhakar's practice including recent shifts therein, his formative years as a young artist at Mumbai's Clark House Initiative and how the aesthetic mode he adopted captures the political and ecological aspects of mining in the era of extractive capitalism (disguised as "development"). We also talk about frequent comparisons with South African artist William Kentridge, inspiration from contemporary artists grappling with history under antagonistic regimes, and the value of artistic research and practice as a collective, peer-driven process.
Click here to access the Image+ Guide & view the material being discussed in the podcast: https://sites.google.com/view/artalaap-podcast-resources/episode-12.
Click here to access the English-language transcript for this episode: https://bit.ly/37HrjIB
Credits:
Producer: Tunak Teas
Intern: Priya Thakur
Translation and transcription: Akansha Naredy & Priya Thakur
Images: Experimenter & Artes Mundi 9
Design & artwork: Mohini Mukherjee
Marketing: Dipalie Mehta
Additional support: Raghav Sagar, Kanishka Sharma, Amy Goldstone-Sharma, Shalmoli Halder, Arunima Nair, Jayant Parashar.
Audio courtesy: Vernouillet by Blue Dot Sessions [CC BY-NC 4.0]
References:
Manik 'Grace' Godghate, 'Ti Geli Tehva Rimjhim', Chandramaadhaviche Pradesh , 1977.
Lajja Shah, 'The Wall Street Journal', ART India, pp. 87-89, Vol. 20, Issue 3, 2017.
Ana Bilbao, 'Mining Colombian contemporary art: histories, scales and techniques of gold extraction', Burlington Contemporary, May 2019.
Kathryn Yusoff, 'Mine as Paradigm', e-flux, June 2021.