Susanta Mandal: A Few Moments of Now and Then
In my works quotidian materials, ordinary events invite viewers to witness and confront raw tactility in interactive environments, where kinetic mechanisms seem playful, but are actually uncanny and sometimes disconcerting constructions. Use of rudimentary low-tech mechanism, theatrical lights and through chiaroscuro, the work’s narrative and performative elements, echo the tradition of vernacular storytelling in India, where painted scrolls are brought to life with lamps at dusk. Along with them, photographs, film-slides, videos and complex programming are put together to bring in some overlapping possibilities about entangled narratives of our time.
© Susanta Mandal
About The Artist
Born in 1965, Calcutta, lives and works in Delhi NCR, India. He studied painting (BFA) at College of Art, Calcutta (1990) and completed his Masters (MFA) from Banaras Hindu University, Banaras (1993), India.
He moved to Delhi in 1993, and since then Delhi has become his second home. In Delhi, from the beginning of his career, he has been engaged with school students and had numerous experiments with the curriculum for the betterment of pedagogy at school level.
When he was studying at Banaras Hindu University, he had his first solo show at Academy of Fine Arts, Calcutta (1992). The show was all about a city which he left behind.
Shifting to a city like Delhi (especially it’s weather) was quite challenging for him at the beginning but the spirit of Delhi moved him and he decided to be here permanently. His second solo show ‘Assemblages’ at Art Heritage, Delhi (1998), introduced his work to the art fraternity of Delhi. It was the time when he started experimenting with structural works along with painted objects and real light.
Afterwards, in his works movements (motor based and videos) took central position. These kind of works by Mandal was first shown at Devi Art Foundation’s inaugural show ‘Still Moving Images’, curated by Diksha Nath, Gurgaon, India (2008). He also had a few solo shows: ‘It doesn’t bite’ at Gallery Ske, Bangalore, India (2007); ‘How long does it take to complete a circle?’ at Gallery Ske, Bangalore, India (2011) and ‘Hard copy’ at Vadehra Art Gallery, New Delhi, India(2015).
Mandal has shown his works at numerous international exhibitions, 3rd Nanjing triennial, ‘Reflective Asia’, Nanjing, China (2008); Shanghai Contemporary, Shanghai (2008); India Xianzai, 20 Indian artists’ show in MOCA, Shanghai, China (2009); Hornbill International Public Art Festival, Nagaland, India (2011); 50 Years of Contemporary Art, ‘Aesthetic Bind- Phantomata’, curated by Geeta Kapur, Chemould Gallery, Mumbai (2013-14);
‘Whorled Explorations’, curated by Jitish Kallat, Kochi-Muziris Biennale, Kochi, India (2014); ‘Making History’, curated by Amit Gupta ,Colombo Art Biennale, Colombo (2014); ‘The Contemporary 2, Who Interprets the World?’ Curated by Hiromi Kurosawa; at 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa. Japan (2015); ‘On Line Dot’, curated by Maki Nishida, Devi Art Foundation in collaboration with Japan Foundation, Delhi, India (2017); Detritus: Matter out of Place, curated by Vidya Shivadas as part of the Serendipity Arts festival at GMC, Goa (2017); ‘Chobi Mela IX’, International festival of photography, Bangladesh (2017);
Chennai Photo Biennale, Curated by Pushpamala, Chennai (2019) and many more.
Mandal was artist in residency at Khoj International, Delhi (2007), Britto International Artists’ workshop, Bangladesh (2008), and Theertha, Pita Kotte, Sri Lanka (2012).
Mandal is part of the LAYOUT Artists’ Collective formed in 2011 in Delhi, India.
From 2011 to date this collective made several location-based collaborative constructions and Performances in India, Sri Lanka and Zurich.