Two week long stay with artists from across the globe is sure to bring out the best in any artist. Painter, designer and photographer Isaac Tsetan Gergan was one of the few who participated in the sixth annual International Artist Residency in Delhi, organised by the Art for Change Foundation.
A quick call to Ladakh where the artist resides gave us a glimpse of how the two weeks were. The artist worked on the theme ‘The Simplicity of Being’ along side others, rediscovering their identity. Talking about his painting, Gergan shares, “My art works are a reflection of my interaction with various cultures while growing up and what I identify myself with. So, I stood on my canvas which lay flat on the ground and I wrote songs, verses, philosophies and conversations I was having while working on them in numerous layers,” shares Gergan whose sense of photography evolved and diversified while studying at Emily Carr University of Art and Design in Vancouver.
The writings on the canvas are not readable, thus, giving it a complex look. His work explores four different languages that he is comfortable in: English, Hindi, Ladakhi and Nepali. Some even have eight to nine languages, borrowed by the diverse creative surrounding he worked in.
“This was my first international residency,” says Gergan, adding, “I believe that the environment I was working in pushed me out of my comfort zone. We helped each other out with different production techniques and even through the creative process. At times when I felt stuck somewhere there was always someone to suggest a way out and this worked both sides. Unlike working alone in a studio, I was more focussed and had an outsider’s perspective.”