Annu Palakunnathu Matthew
Bollywood Satirized, What Will People Think?, luminage print, 36" x 50", Lent by the Artist
"This is the story of the India I know, with its biases, selections, omissions, distortions, all mine."1
I was born in England, raised in India and now live in America, and my mixed or "masala" background shapes my life and my work. Bollywood Satirized uses parody and satire to critically explore the societal expectations I experienced as a woman growing up in India. The work investigates issues such as the role of women in Indian society, the dowry system, arranged marriages, and discrimination based on skin color.
As much as Bollywood Satirized criticizes Indian society, Memories of India explores my love and appreciation for the culture. These photographs are as much interpretations as documentations, evoking the memory of the smells, sounds, and sights of my childhood. The images are reminiscent of a Raga in Indian music, where the notes are delicate and complex, blending to form a poignant melody that will carry viewers into memories of my homeland, India.
1 Shashi Tharoor, The Great Indian Novel
—Annu Palakunnathu Matthew
Using the medium of photography in two very different ways, Annu Palakunnathu Matthew makes images about childhood memory and women's issues in her homeland of India. The rich and glowing Memories of India series depicts a subtle, nostalgic look at the type of people and places Matthew remembers. In finding—not arranging—her shots, she has perfect timing for discovering magical light and ageless situations. The use of black and white film enhances this traditional documentary style, a plastic Holga camera lens imparts the soft hazy quality, and the diminutive print size makes the images and memories they evoke that much more precious.
Bollywood Satirized, on the other hand, is a loud, intensely colorful, and satirical criticism of Indian society's restrictive traditions and related hidden crimes. With cutting edge imaging technology, large digital output, and graphic statistical text, Matthew's posters illustrate the issues she questions. Nothing is fortuitous in creating this work—there is no waiting or chance timing involved. By using real posters, combined with her own photographs and words, Matthew has ultimate control over the creation of her images, and in so doing attempts to take control of the larger societal picture. These posters break the silence of unspoken tradition, force open a dialogue, and demand change.
These two bodies of work, shown together, balance Matthew's love for, but frustration with, her native country.
—Jennifer Uhrhane
Curatorial Fellow
Partial funding for Annu Palakunnathu Matthew's work was provided by the Rhode Island State Council for the Arts and the University of Rhode Island Foundation.
Please join the artist for an informal gallery talk on Saturday, June 23 at 3pm.
