On the edge of the sea (Installation View)

Atul Bhalla's showcase at Senate House during Chennai Photo Biennale 2019. Atul Bhalla, in his engagement with the eco-politics of water, has been pushing for various thematic links through his multifaceted practice. Primarily using photography, the artist explores histories and associative meanings of sites of everyday living, building narratives through performance and many times using text as well. His own body becomes a vessel in these explorations, as he photographs himself standing, sitting, lying or immersed in these spaces. He is particularly interested in the juncture where history makes itself visible in the present, not in a direct narrative manner but almost sublimely, where history is taken for granted despite its many implications which are in contrast to today’s world view.