Asmita Sarkar - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Asmita Sarkar

Journal of Aesthetic Education

Contemporary painting is a complex practice, and artists regularly incorporate elements from diff... more Contemporary painting is a complex practice, and artists regularly incorporate elements from different media such as photography, textile, and performance. Despite its status being diminished by different conceptual art movements, painting still has a critically important place in the artworld. This importance is largely due to painting's ability to stretch across media and make a direct appeal to the senses. In this article, an attempt is made to theorize the facility of painting to incorporate different media and its resulting reflexivity. Maurice Merleau-Ponty's theory of embodiment and phenomenological theory of metaphor provide the theoretical means to articulate reflexivity in painting. Curatorial writing about contemporary painting and case studies of young painters from India form a backdrop for the analysis of examples from the painting practice of one of the authors to demonstrate the material dynamism of painting. It is shown that this reflexivity is intimately re...

Journal of Visual Art Practice

This article investigates the nature of perceptual and actual spaces created and occupied by pain... more This article investigates the nature of perceptual and actual spaces created and occupied by painting. The focus is on two artistic projects taken up by the author that incorporate sculptural elements and site-specific explorations to create a series of work. The body of work retains characteristics unique to painting. These projects are situated against the background of a similar trend in contemporary painting that sees many painters taking their painterly gesture outside of the bounds and flat surface of the canvas. This investigation is also a search for establishing theory-practice relation as the author's own practice is analysed with the support of Maurice Merleau-Ponty's phenomenological theory of embodied perception. This theory proposes the radical notion that sensation is an active reflective process and vision works in unity with different tactile and kinaesthetic senses. Reflective analysis of author's evolving practice – from the two-dimensional flat canvas to expansive installations on the terrain of a Himalayan village – opens up a productive opportunity for exploring how contemporary paintings incorporate and respond to space. Application of pigments through gestural brushstrokes on appropriate surfaces and strategically positioning these painted surfaces following compositional rules are ways of creating paintings in an expanded space.

Leonardo, 2022

In this article, the authors explore the sensuous and material dimensions of artworks inspired by... more In this article, the authors explore the sensuous and material dimensions of artworks inspired by biological science. They use Maurice Merleau- Ponty's concept of “flesh” to reflect upon the embodied processes of understanding that unfold during a viewer's initial encounter with an artwork. Using Merleau-Ponty's phenomenology of perception and the work of selected artists based in India who engage with biology and botany, the authors locate the sensing body in a reciprocal relationship with these artists' works.

Visual Inquiry, 2021

The idea of ecology has changed drastically during the last few decades. The trend in scholarship... more The idea of ecology has changed drastically during the last few decades. The trend in scholarship has changed from exclusively studying nature and natural objects, to include human’s relationship to it. In this context the present article aims to look at the ecological implication of site-specific practice: concentrating on contemporary drawing and paintings realized in the context of urban India. To this aim some aspects of site-specific mark-making would be analysed seeking support from philosopher Merleau-Ponty’s (1993, [1945] 2008) idea of phenomenological embodiment and the theory of ecological perception proposed by psychologist Gibson (1966, 1972). Works of contemporary drawing/painting practitioners from India, practitioners such as Gagan Singh, artist collectives such as Networks and Neighborhood, St+art, Geechugalu, along with author’s own practice will illustrate how site-specific pattern-making can be a way of interacting with the environment, establishing new connection...

Chitrolekha Journal on Art and Design, 2020

Contemporary painting is a complex practice that incorporates elements of different media and bea... more Contemporary painting is a complex practice that incorporates elements of different media and bear diverse historical and cultural influences. Contemporary painting from South-East Asian diaspora is no less different. In this paper an attempt has been made to analyze a few contemporary painters’ work in light of phenomenological theory. Merleau-Ponty’s (1993, 2004, 2008) theory of embodiment and phenomenology of perception has been used to show how the fusion of material exploration, embodied engagement with the lived environment, and knowledge of art-historical and contemporary trend results in creation of painting. It was also shown that the artists discussed are adept at combining cultural and sensual components in their painting thus creating works of art that has a broad cross-cultural appeal. It was argued that a theoretical lens that pays due attention to material and sensual aspects of art can open-up new horizon of analysis.

Rupkatha Journal on Interdisciplinary Studies in Humanities, 2020

In recent years different art and design institutions around the world are increasingly looking a... more In recent years different art and design institutions around the world are increasingly looking at developing programs that are research intensive. Along with this trend, doctoral programs that are art and design practice based are becoming progressively common. There are several debates around the nature and significance of art and design practice as research (Sullivan 2005 Borgdorff, 2010, Eriksson 2010). Many have doubts about the exact nature of knowledge contribution made by these PhD theses. One distinct aspect common to all these programs is that these consider creation of art or design artefacts a part of the research process. This paper will discuss some theoretical view-points and philosophical speculations such as discourse on material of art, performance embodiment, cultural-scientific knowledge behind creation of artefact. The aim is to show that the process oriented and performative aspects of art-practice can come into a meaningful dialogue with traditional humanities...

Rural and Remote Health, 2009

Outcomes of different subgroups of smear-positive retreatment patients under RNTCP in rural West ... more Outcomes of different subgroups of smear-positive retreatment patients under RNTCP in rural West Bengal, India

Drawing: Research, Theory, Practice, 2017

This article offers an approach to drawing pedagogy and presents case studies of drawings produce... more This article offers an approach to drawing pedagogy and presents case studies of drawings produced by students from Srishti Institute of Art, Design and Technology, Bangalore, South India. The project aims to examine whether the conceptual and subjective aspects of drawing can be combined with contextual reading. Students were instructed to draw pictures inspired by texts related to cognitive psychology, anthropology, literature and philosophy. Their whimsical and speculative drawings incorporated conceptual elements from the texts beyond objective representation, demonstrating the influence of interdisciplinary course content on drawing. The results provide new insights into debates of visual literacy and drawing pedagogy.