article In conversation with
Sana Rao
In conversation with
Sana Rao
Sana Rao
In conversation with Sana Rao
about Artist the seer, Artist as healer.
about Artist the seer, Artist as healer.
In conversation with Sana Rao
about Artist the seer, Artist as healer.
Sana Rao is an Indian artist living and working in London. Reflecting on her mindful use of natural materials, Sana shares how her practice connects her to her roots and the earth, envisioning a future where technology and the body can harmonise
Artiq Within your creative practice, you work with a lot of natural materials, specifically Indian ink and raw canvas. Can you share with us about considerations of mindfulness within your choice of materials?
Sana I use specific inks called ‘photoinks,’ which are no longer manufactured in a lot of the world. People would use these pigments in the early days of photography and I’ve managed to find a supplier in India. I use these inks non-traditionally as a means of materiality, to connect me with where I come from: being India, and where I come from: as in grounded to the Earth. The materials are ungovernable, you can only use so much of them and do so much with them until you have to let go and you have to let them have a conversation back with you; almost using their own intelligence.
Sana I use specific inks called ‘photoinks,’ which are no longer manufactured in a lot of the world. People would use these pigments in the early days of photography and I’ve managed to find a supplier in India. I use these inks non-traditionally as a means of materiality, to connect me with where I come from: being India, and where I come from: as in grounded to the Earth. The materials are ungovernable, you can only use so much of them and do so much with them until you have to let go and you have to let them have a conversation back with you; almost using their own intelligence.
Artiq How does the making process of working with fluids, such as ink, impact your state of personal meditation while working?
Sana I start with pure water and use almost completely undiluted pigments, inks and concentrates. The moment you put them on they cannot be removed. All you can do is let it flow, or gently nudge it. I choose to work on different parts of the ground, and depending on the tilt it will flow differently. You can’t quite see the tilt of the earth but you can see it in the movement of the ink. A lot of things affect the work: the temperature of the studio, the source of water. Sometimes when I am traveling, I will take water from the ocean, for example, or the swimming pool, as the water itself has different density and materiality. That changes the way that ink spreads and the material spreads as well. I am not making that painting by myself, I am making my painting with a lot of natural elements that we ignore.
Sana I start with pure water and use almost completely undiluted pigments, inks and concentrates. The moment you put them on they cannot be removed. All you can do is let it flow, or gently nudge it. I choose to work on different parts of the ground, and depending on the tilt it will flow differently. You can’t quite see the tilt of the earth but you can see it in the movement of the ink. A lot of things affect the work: the temperature of the studio, the source of water. Sometimes when I am traveling, I will take water from the ocean, for example, or the swimming pool, as the water itself has different density and materiality. That changes the way that ink spreads and the material spreads as well. I am not making that painting by myself, I am making my painting with a lot of natural elements that we ignore.
Artiq Your art is concerned with how art can heal the relationship between technology and the body. How has your practise allowed you to imagine symbiotic futures where these two can coexist harmoniously?
Sana In design, and there is a famous quote that I would see when studying from Marshall McLuhan and he talks about how any technology is an extension of your body and your psyche. We are at our current version of technology, but if you look at a canvas, a brush or a pen, they’re technologies too. I use technology in my paintings that allows us to still have a slower connection which means that we are able to check in with ourselves and be more intentional with what we are doing. We are reaching a point in where technology is now that we need to think: how do we change technology to make it return back to being an extension of us, rather than a replacement?
Sana In design, and there is a famous quote that I would see when studying from Marshall McLuhan and he talks about how any technology is an extension of your body and your psyche. We are at our current version of technology, but if you look at a canvas, a brush or a pen, they’re technologies too. I use technology in my paintings that allows us to still have a slower connection which means that we are able to check in with ourselves and be more intentional with what we are doing. We are reaching a point in where technology is now that we need to think: how do we change technology to make it return back to being an extension of us, rather than a replacement?
Artiq You recently took part in our anniversary exhibition Fifteen that explored themes of steadfastness, nostalgia and nature. Alongside your visual art practice, you also write poetry. In one of them, you write about the artist as a seer and healer. Can you elaborate on this?
Sana
‘Artist the seer
Artist as healer’
One of my favourite writers and seers is an Indian author named Arundhati Roy – she has this quote which says: ‘another world is coming on a quiet day, I can hear her breathing.’ I resonate that with what I'm trying to do with my practice. Artists in general are situated in culture in that they are people who are responsible for world-making and envisioning alternate pathways. It is only through that visioning can people even see out of the current paradigms. That's where we are now, a natural end of the current paradigm; there's so much political unrest, so much activism happening, I think it’s now that the artists are coming again to show what is possible.
Sana
‘Artist the seer
Artist as healer’
One of my favourite writers and seers is an Indian author named Arundhati Roy – she has this quote which says: ‘another world is coming on a quiet day, I can hear her breathing.’ I resonate that with what I'm trying to do with my practice. Artists in general are situated in culture in that they are people who are responsible for world-making and envisioning alternate pathways. It is only through that visioning can people even see out of the current paradigms. That's where we are now, a natural end of the current paradigm; there's so much political unrest, so much activism happening, I think it’s now that the artists are coming again to show what is possible.
