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Installation view of ka Dingiei at Growing like a Tree, curated by Sohrab Hura at Ishara Art Foundation. Images courtesy of the artists and Ishara Art Foundation. Photography by Ismail Noor/Seeing Things.
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Untitled, from the work/series ka Dingiei, 2016, 24”x24”, Archival pigment print
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Untitled, from the work/series ka Dingiei, 2018, 20”x20”, Archival pigment print
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Untitled, from the work/series ka Dingiei, 2019, 24”x24”, Archival pigment print
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Untitled, from the work/series ka Dingiei, 2018, 24”x24”, Archival pigment print
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Untitled, from the work/series ka Dingiei, 2018, 20”x20”, Archival pigment print
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Untitled, from the work/series ka Dingiei, 2016, 24”x24”, Archival pigment print
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ka Dingiei
2015 - Ongoing
Photographs, Archival pigment prints, booksWhen a community loses land to mining, there is immediately discernible destruction of place, and loss of livelihood. Entwined with these are deeper losses, such as those of culture, mythology, and identity that are intangible and arguably more valuable. Using photography and bookmaking, ka Dingiei allegorically explores repercussions of habitat loss, environmental extraction, and indigenous issues in Lama Punji, a Khasi village situated at the border of India and Bangladesh that is a site of significant sand and stone mining. Produced in grayscale, the work interweaves mythological and documentary narratives while re-interpreting local oral histories, and Khasi myth. The narrative takes the thread of a quest as a child, Arlangki, searches for ka Dingiei, an ancient mythical creature rumoured to hold lessons about restoring balance in nature. Created through research, systematic collecting, and image-making, ka Dingiei is an ongoing long-term collaboration with Lama Punji.
Supported by the Umrao Singh Sher-Gil Grant for Photography 2019, SSAF
