Part of History for Peace's 'Political Partitions, Human Stories' series, this is an illustrated talk by multimedia artist Prajna Parasher on her father, artist S.L. Parasher's Partition Sketches; followed by a conversation with her sister and historian Aloka Parasher-Sen.
'This remarkable series occupies a unique place in our history, a place universally felt but seldom mentioned. S. L. Parasher was the Vice-Principal of the Mayo School of Art, Lahore, and Founder Principal of the Punjab School of Arts, Simla. Parasher spent 1945-47 as commandant of the Baldev Nagar Refugee Camp in Ambala and Gandhinagar Camp, Delhi. Wrested, like everyone else, from much of what he knew and loved, he spent sleepless evenings walking amongst the refugees and often stopping to sketch the visible evidence of all that was lost.
[ . . . . ]In my talk I will invite you to follow your gaze at Parasher’s images. A few of the images will be able to look at you. What they do offer is what they gave Parasher, the gift of their turning away so that we can follow that sightline into its absence. And in its emptiness recognize what was taken from them.
Parasher brought nothing out of Lahore but his family and the artistic integrity that allowed him to render this new space in joyous colour. Important in their own right, these works are also an index of the forces he was juggling as he established the Punjab School of Arts in Simla. Many of these images are not turned inward or turned away; instead they look forward toward the artist, toward us, the viewers. Did Parasher know he was documenting the birth of a new nation? It is tempting to believe that he did.'
-Prajna Parasher
Prajna Paramita Parasher is a filmmaker/scholar and multimedia artist practicing at the shifting intersection of classical thought and new technologies. Currently she is Professor of Art, Film and Cultural Studies, Chair of the Arts, Design and Communication department and Program Director of the Film and Digital Technology program and Interdisciplinary Design program at Chatham University.
Aloka Parasher-Sen has been teaching at the University of Hyderabad, India since 1979 where she is currently Professor of History and Dean School of Social Sciences.
Негізгі бет Witness to Loss: Parasher's Partition Sketches
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