KOCHI: Delving on the nature of authority, oppression and identity, a series of installations dubbed ‘Poetry Installation’ by a group of artists gives sculptural, visual and aural form to four poems by four different poets, including one by Tibetan writer and activist Tenzin Tsundue. The event was inaugurated by Tsundue himself at Durbar Hall on Thursday.
Says Vinod Krishna, director of the event, “Man, throughout history has created artificial boundaries around himself and imposed identities of nation and ethnicity on the people falling within these boundaries. The world is essentially free for people to travel anywhere, but we impose passports and visas to regulate the coming and going of people within these boundaries. What nationality can we ascribe to migratory birds, who fly from one place to another during different seasons?”
This contradiction is brought out powerfully in the opening lines of Rafeeq Ahmad’s poem, ‘A Few Lines of Patriotism’, one of the installations:
‘The birds on the border are confirmed troublemakers.
Without rhyme or reason, They keep darting this way and that.
By the time we get one on our sights, its nationality would have changed.’
Vinod, a filmmaker by profession, concieved the project along with sound designer Renganath Ravee and art director Sharon Philip. This is the second series of installations by the group, the first held in June last year.
“Through the series of installations,” says Vinod, “the attempt is to expand the scope of poetry and give it a multi-dimensional appeal. On the one hand, you hear the poem recited through the speakers layered with sound effects, while on the other the poem is interpreted through the three-dimensional medium of sculpture.”
Tenzin’s poem ‘When it Rains in Dharamshala’, depicting the agony of Tibetans living in exile, is illustrated with boxing gloves raining down on a figure of the Buddha in meditation. Though there is no reference to Buddha in the poem, Vinod said the Buddha being a symbol of peace and serenity and the prevlance of Buddhism in Tibet, the installation is an allegory for how authority has crushed peace in the region and driven several thousand people into exile. The poems are heard in a Malayalam translation recited by actor-director-playwright John Mathew.
Two more works are included in the series, ‘The Din on a Chessboard’, by Cini Mathew John, a depiction of the way ruling establishments have constantly preyed on the weak and helpless, especially women, robbing them of their dreams.
‘March of the Coffins’ by Ajeesh Dasan looks at the relation between people in power and those in authority, especially in places where leaders are elected on the basis of the people’s mandate.
The exhibition is on at Durbar Hall until June 15.