Ingredients
Red onion
Ginger
Garlic
Tomato
Green chili
Spinach
Cottage cheese
Dried fenugreek
Dried cumin
Dried coriander
Garam masala
Tumeric
Ghee
Heavy cream
“Do you know what is this?”
“Oh yes! Its ghee, animal fat. Does it make the palak paneer better? ”
“Makes it taste better. And makes you fat!”
perhaps one more trip could have been had. perhaps more time could have been spent. but i believe what we had was enough. there is no need or want for winding eulogies or monologues or soliloques for fear of being accused of hypocriticism. but neither will i deny these feelings that i have. your chains are gone and death will only be another great adventure here on for you. grace to grace, i will greet your rest with a quiet gladness, that it was short and with as little pain for you. and until we meet again in the skies, may your star shine brightly to guide my path. with grace, will i bid you good night, dear heart, good night and dream sweet.
some day, all i’ll have of you will be my imagined you.
Image credit: Yue Rong
Notes on the exhibition: I am, but also
13 September 2019 - 27 September 2019
About the exhibition
To make sense of the world, we label and are labelled. To connect with others and form bonds, we live within the labels that are given to us, be it by ourselves or by others. A cycle forms where our perceived identities informs others of who we are, and their reaction to us, informs the self. It begs the question then: do we create our own identity, or is it created upon the experiences we have?
People’s perception of us becomes a check by which we enact upon how we would like to be seen. In these categorisations of ourselves, there are those that drown in the attempt to convince the world who they are supposed to be. Their refusal to be reduced to singular terms is an insistent demand to be recognised for their multiplicity.
Yet, in identifying with labels, there is empowerment in language for many whom for so long lack the words to speak for themselves. It is an endless journey of discovery, answering to baggage of histories that come with such terminologies.
What happens then when we dare to go beyond these labels? Do our identities fall apart? Is it not possible to simply exist or are we too tied up by the descriptions that they inevitably inform our identities?
I am, but also follows four women as they explore beyond the labels they inhabit, overcoming the ways they have been restricted and seeking ways of empowerment through their identities.