Medium: Preservation using Epoxy Resin
Storytelling is a traditional practice in many Indian cultures. It has been the primary tool used to carry forward knowledge across generations. Growing up in the Middle East, away from my Indian ancestry and heritage, these stories were my only tool to understand my ancestry and the history of India. The Pavakkai Lamp draws its inspiration from one such story I heard as a child, a story about acceptance and embracing failures.
The story is about Pavakkai (bitter gourd in Tamil), a vegetable detested by many for its bitter aftertaste. Through this project, I pay homage to Pavakkai and the story it represents by imbibing the values it taught me in my process. The act of preservation, the learning it takes to complete this act and the failure I faced in this process form the essence of this project. By giving this story a tangible form through this act of preservation, I preserve the values this story represents for time immemorial.
