Portraits of a community

Images have an ability to narrate an artist’s journey and the moments witnessed by them.
A book-binding workshop organised by Offset at Studio 365, Pitampura
A book-binding workshop organised by Offset at Studio 365, Pitampura

A picture is worth a thousand words—this adage seems to be the foundation on which Anshika Varma (36), an artist and curator of lens-based artworks from Defence Colony established the Offset Projects in 2018. Curating photo books in collaboration with photographers and artists, Varma’s project is “an inquiry into authorship and the democratic dissemination of artistic expression through the book form.” The idea, according to her, allows “to break notions of exclusivity in access and readings/ownership of photography.”

Images have the ability to narrate an artist’s journey and the moments witnessed by them. Varma realised this while conducting art therapy workshops with a diverse group of youngsters aged between 13 and 19 in Delhi. Her takeaway from these sessions was that photo books can become a medium through which one can explore a number of narratives and create fantasies of their own. Varma decided to narrow her approach and focus mainly on the South Asian region. This idea helped her reach out to others associated with the medium of photography and being a strong voice of representation of the region.

Crafting tales with images

Through Offset, Varma curates workshops, book-binding excercises, artist talks, reading rooms, and collaborative exercises in publishing, to provide a wholesome outlook on photography and storytelling. The team emphasises on conversations about photography with those who exist outside the realms of the art. The Pitara—a travelling, pop-up library by them, usually set up in schools, universities, and community centres—has stemmed from this very thought. It introduces people to photo books across genres. Another programme titled Guftgu (Urdu word for ‘conversation’) features virtual talks with artists to create a sustainable space for dialogue on photography.

Their virtual bookstore—launched in 2020—can be touted as one of India’s only stores dedicated to a selection of photography books with a focus on independent publishers from across South Asia. Curated by Varma, these volumes provide a diverse range of voices, perspectives, and engagements in photography, bringing such page-turners into the international limelight.

An attempt at inclusion

Offset recently published their first de-constructed book on photography, Guftgu—a collection of 10 authors in the form of nine zines. Initially, this book was offered to a number of schools and universities free of charge. Their second print is multilingual and will provide a better understanding of these diverse voices.

Currently, Varma is working on another project titled HerStory—an attempt to curate family histories through the prism of the womxn’s perspectives and experiences. With an open call deadline of January 25, it aims to provide artists an opportunity to share photographs of womxn in their families. “It has become important for me to expand on more stories, separate from the social and culturally imposed ideas of womanhood. If we can truly be inclusive of the stories that shape us, I believe that we grow with a deeper understanding of the world,” she concludes.

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