The Forest Peacock
ankon mitra
Medium: Mix Media on paper
Size:33” X 42” X 5"
Year:
Ref. No:ANK 306
The Forest Peacock is fi rst and foremost a collaboration with Tholu-Bommalata (shadow puppetry) artist Anjanappa and
his assistants from Nimmalakunta village, Dharmavaram, district Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh. They have shown a dialogue
between two peacocks on parchment leather and then that sheet has been folded - an expression of an ancient scroll or
palimpsest cast in a new form. The light coming through the work signifi es a look at mythology, indigenous forest culture
and a deep appreciation and respect for nature, all the things that are threatened by man in the current day and age. By
collaborating with artisans, a city born and bred artist seeks to re-establish a tenuous link back with people who know nature
and the environment better than us, who already have an ongoing dialogue with Mother Earth and who can help us to also
forge bonds with our most ancient and original mother. As the two peacocks engage in dialogue, upside down with respect to
each other, the works refl ects on the topsy-turvy nature of the relationship we have with the Earth at present. We can exploit
her resources, but we cannot understand her nor comprehend what she says.
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