Take the traditional route

Wooden Chariot, Ayodhyapattinam, Van Dyke Print 2015

Keen to discover new facets of photography? Does the term ‘Historic Photography' intrigue you? Take a tour into the world of Ouso Chakola, a Kochi-based artist, who has experimented with his lens by exploring the stunning architecture of Tamil Nadu's temples. He has dabbled with alternative photographic printing techniques, commonly referred as traditional photography. Conducted by the Clarke House, the exhibition is on till this Saturday.

When we asked as to why the event is named as ‘The unimportant histories of Architecture, Chakola reasons, "The exhibition looks at the social and political histories of architecture which is often ignored by the society and aims at shedding light on the lost heritage of these temples that were once remembered for their Dravidian Architecture."

For Chakola, the narrative is immediate in his images, and its essence lies in the process instead of the finished reel. He studied alternative rather traditional pedantic processes of photography and has been working towards creating something magical through a blend of history and photography.

Wooden Chariot, Ayodhyapattinam, Van Dyke Print 2015

On choosing alternative over digital photography, he explains, "I like the way it feels. It's the most organic approach to make images. Before the invention of digital photography, there were thousands of approaches to make images. Digital has completely revolutionised how we take images. It has become easy now."

Ganpati Temple Tiruvannamalai, Van Dyke Print 2015

The exhibition is not just about architectural history but also about the social history that surrounds these magnificent edifices. "It's the play of perspective. The audience could expect Van Dyke and Cryptonite prints placed in dramatic manner that spells originality and endless mysteries a picture can hold."

Till: July 4, 11 am to 7 pm
At: Clarke House, 8 Nathalal Parekh Marg (Old Wodehouse Road), Colaba.
Call: 9820213816