About this event

in the
Main Gallery
Friday 14 October  2011 – Friday 23 2011
Daily 12 noon – 9pm
Design by Preetika Sah

enter11 is Watermans annual exhibition of the year’s finest work by South Asian Digital Art and Design Graduates.

enter provides a platform to showcase the emerging talent in the field of digital art, design and media production.  This year’s exhibition includes work that involves innovative processes and diverse material ranging from design, interactive installation, film, graphic and communication design.

The exhibiting artists have been handpicked from some of the country’s leading Institutes that offer unique opportunities in exploring digital art, design and innovative technologies. The selected artists take different approaches to the use of technologies in their creative practice in order to articulate their responses to contemporary issues in an innovative manner.

Selected artists

Priyanka Gaitonde MA Design for Textile Futures, Central Saint Martin’s College of Art & Design

NANO COOKBOOK

The NANO COOKBOOK is a cookbook that communicates emerging technologies in a visually compelling way. Using everyday familiar metaphors of eggs and recipes it tries to engage with the unfamiliar and abstract science. The recipes in the cookbook are in the form of a Nanome; an egg with millions of atomic layers of coded information. When any layer is activated by a code, it undergoes a process of molecular self assembly to create a unique electro-info-bi­otic-dish. The recipes suggest provocative scenarios, inviting one to question and form ones own imaginative vision of the future. The recipes in this book also have links to real research taking place in labs around the world.

WHY : “The greatest discoveries of science have always been those that forced us to rethink our beliefs about the universe and our place in it.” ~Robert L. Park, in The New York Times, 7 De­cember 1999. Nanotechnology with its ability to transform and control matter at the atomic scale appears to be one such discovery of science. Future nanotechnologies are predicted to be a synthesis of biology, robotics, electronics, information and cognitive sciences that would affect almost every area of human activity like medicine, food, clothing, defence, national security, envi­ronment, energy generation, electronics, computing and could come up with powerful life chang­ing technologies like A I, space travel, medical treatments, robotics etc.

The potentially immense risks and benefits nanotechnology presents to society therefore requires ethical reflection. However according to my research most people have never heard of nanotech­nology and there is communication gap between the scientist and the general public. TheNANO COOKBOOK was created from these insights.

Priyanka Gaitonde is a designer exploring the intersection of materials, crafting, technology, com­munication and society.

Based in both India and London she has been working on research led projects within diverse Gobal contexts. Her work spans from grass root development of hand woven traditional textiles in India to critical design and future technological scenario building in collaboration with scientists and researchers. Trained as weaver she experiments with a variety of mediums like hand crafting, digital coding, films, photography, space and sound.

Her current work explores the changing roles of a designer in a fast paced ever transitioning so­ciety and pushing the concept of textiles as a tool to engage with ones surroundings.

http://www.priyankagaitonde.com/

Akhila Krishnan – MA Communication Art & Design, RCA

DHARAMKOT PLACE OF PRAYER

2011, Digital Video with sound, presented in an installation
Created in collaboration with Chris Bartholomew and Laetitia Stott

This film is concerned with the idea of location and material. Buddhist prayer flags are hung along mountaintops and paths all over the Himalayas. It is believed that as the wind moves through them, the prayers on the flags are carried away into the surrounding world. In the moment of this encounter between prayer-fabric-wind, there is a conjunction of the sacred/ordinary, the ephemeral/material and the tactile/visual. This film uses the camera to reveal and make manifest this moment that the eye can sense but not see.

CONVERGE (from the Stitch series)
2011, Thread & Paper

The Stitch series is rooted in the cinematic theory of Persistence of Vision, which says that the interval between each still frame is bridged in our minds in order to perceive film as ‘life-like.’ It has been proposed that our natural vision works in the same way to sense continuous motion.

I aim to give a form and materiality to this interval. I seek out the invisible that lies within ordinary structures; the pages of a book or the walls of a building and make them manifest. The threads are a means to reflect motion, time and space itself. Converge in particular, also explores the intersection of ideas of shape, medium, dimension and sense i.e. the tactile/visual.

Akhila Krishnan is a visual artist and film-maker. She completed her BA at the National Institute of Design (India), during which she also studied at the Ecole Nationale Superieure Des Arts Decoratifs (Paris) as an exchange student. In 2009, she was awarded the prestigious Inlaks Shivadasani Scholarship to pursue her M.A. at the Royal College of Art.

Akhila received a distinction for her post-graduate thesis at the RCA, which explored how ideas of materiality and tactility could be located within the context of the moving image. Her practice builds on this research, exploring the relationship between the material and the temporal, the still and the moving image; negotiating their knots of tension and connection.

She is interested in the act of revealing; in weaving back and forth between the mediums of drawing, textiles and film, Akhila explores the resonances between them. She uses each to influence and uncover new dimensions of the other. This act of translation is crucial to her work. Through the resulting shift in meaning and language, she aims to transform our experience of the ordinary, to enable the viewer to perceive in a new and sensual way. In this way, Akhila’s work is concerned with the body and with memory; to create, convey and remember experiences. Her process is rooted in a documentary-based approach that is concerned with personal history, space, geography and culture.

Akhila is interested in collaborative and cross disciplinary practice, working with fellow practitioners to create work that has been shown in the Barbican, the Southbank Centre, the Horse Hospital (Bloomsbury), West London Synagogue, the National Theatre and the Kanoria Centre for the Arts. Her films have been shown on Doordarshan (the national TV channel in India) and screened at various film festivals like Film South Asia (Nepal), Al Jazeera Film Festival (Qatar) and The Open Frame Film festival (organised by the UN in New Delhi.) Akhila also worked as a visiting tutor at the National Institute of Design from 2007-2009.

www.akhilakrishnan.com

Shafiah Latif – Graphic Design: New Media, UCA Epsom

MERGE

Merge is a project that explores both Eastern and Western cultures through the use of languages in writing. The project Merge was initiated by the fact that many individuals have been born and raised in the UK but have an ethnic background that derives from many different cultures around the world and is what makes Britain the multi-cultural society it is today. The two languages that have been focused on are Urdu and English. The project aims to look into Romanisation, a form of communicating a different language through transliterating, this has been done with Urdu through the use of the English alphabet. ‘Merge’ examines the use of phonetics and linguistics of Urdu in English. It also aims to find a common ground in both cultures through popular culture and interests, in particular jokes, lyrics and poetry have been used and developed to produce the final outcomes.

Shafiah Latif has recently graduated from University for the Creative Arts at Epsom in Graphic Design: New Media. From a young age she has always had a passion for calligraphy, in her time studying she has developed this love for typography and language. Culture and identity has always influenced her work and concepts. To quote John Cleese she believes that “High creativity is responding to situations without critical thought” (playfulness) and she feels to reach that it is always important to not be afraid of silly ideas.

Shafiah has recently been inspired by the works of Joshua Davis and is now working on self initiated projects where she is experimenting with her own illustrations and computer aided design. In the future she would love to be involved in Art Direction and project management and to start up her own design studio.

www.shafiahlatif.com

Alkesh Parmar – MA in GSMJ (Applied Arts), Royal College of Art

MATERIALISATION

Light is a universal language within most religions it has a magical element represented in a form of de-materialised matter but I have also been engaged in thinking about processes of re-materialisation, materials being transformed from one sphere to another, in most cases, materials which are normally detained to be simply waste product without further use.

Both de-materialisation and re-materialisation are linked for me because they are aspects of energy systems. My thinking about light is both from the standpoint of physical manifestation but is in turn connected to the etheric substrate of the human being- the etheric and subtle as an emitter of light – or being a light sensitive medium.

Alkesh Parmar was born in Leicester where he studied a BA in Design Crafts, back then in 2005 it was a new course which fed the demand of a new generation of applied artists not wanting to restrict their practice to a single craft/skill but instead explore many skills, materials and processes. After this Alkesh went onto to Royal College of Art where he again studied an Applied Arts course, this proved to challenge his creativity both artistically and also as a designer. Here he explored his fascination of spiritual light and sustainable materials, where he constantly crossed boundaries of art and design to then question the nature of applied arts and its relevance as a school. Alkesh is now a London based artist/designer who is at the forefront of sustainable and lighting design art.

alkeshparmar.com
Sabiha Rajar – MA Textile Design, Chelsea College of Art & Design

FUTURE TRADITIONS

This Project is also based on a textile craft of Pakistan called Ralli/Quilts, which started as means of recycling. The inspiration for this Craft, Rallis was the Makli Tombs (14th-18th century) in Thatta, Pakistan which is one of the world’s biggest necropolis. The stone carvings on the tombs are amazing source of inspiration till today. Sabiha Rajar is taking up this Craft into a new dimension and at an advance level using new means as digital print and Laser cutter and bringing back the knowledge of working with the Craft by new methods and techniques without losing its identity.

Sabiha Rajar is a Textile Designer and has been teaching at Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture in the Textile Department in Pakistan. The area of her interest is Design Intervention, to sustain the Textile Crafts of Pakistan. Sabiha believes it’s a responsibility of a designer to help sustain crafts and promote them through Design Intervention.

sabiharajar@wordpress.com

www.chelseamatextiles.com

 

Preetika Sah – MA Communication Design, Central Saint Martin’s College of Art & Design

VISUAL PHONICS

Visual Phonics is a symbolic system developed to represent the spoken sound in written form. The project establishes the role of sound in written text, which is crucial for pronunciation or learning a new language.

The symbols are universal in application and are developed keeping in mind the people with visual or hearing impairments, adopting a multi- sensory approach towards sound – letter cognition and development. Visual Phonics is a method of teaching people to read based on the sounds that the letters represent.
The Consonant sounds are mapped according to the place of articulation (tongue, lip, teeth) and the vowel sounds according to their frequency.
The symbolic system gives us a unique experience of looking into the lives of the blind and deaf. They often form separate communities by following different set of languages, which are alien to us (ASL and Braille). The main aim of the project was to create symbols that don’t create stereotyped boundaries and are universal in their application.

Preetika Sah adopts a multidisciplinary approach in creating people centric design that forms the epicenter in her design practice. The visual transference of sound both physical and perceptible is of a core interest to her. She intends to explore sound from a multi dimensional angle creating multi sensory sound – vision explorations in the future.

The practicality and productivity in design is what keeps her going and working to make a difference. At the end the artist hopes the project will make the people see – hear – sing to the melodies, which often go unnoticed.

http://preetikasah.blogspot.com/

 

Jigna Patel – BA Design, Goldsmiths, University of London

DRAW-IT-YOURSELF

Do-It-Yourself (D.I.Y) describes a way of changing or repairing something without employing an expert. You are an amateur who wants to try your hand at a set of skills without undertaking numerous lessons or spending lots of time in classes.

Draw-It-Yourself presents a range of tools and devices that enables anyone, amateur or not to engage in the act of drawing. The devices capture, recreate or portray the subject matter offering instant results. Using the devices allow the user to produce their own drawings fairly accurately without having to enroll or adhere to traditional rules of drawing whilst still allowing the user to have their own creative input.

Jigna Patel was born in North London, 1987. She moved to Leeds at the age of 18 where she completed her art foundation at Leeds College of art and design. During her stay in Leeds she was fortunate to produce graphic work for various bands.

Knowing that design was the industry she wanted to be in she studied at Goldsmith University, having just recently just graduated with a BA Hons in Design.

She has worked with various design companies such as Tank and Re-design and had her work published.

In the future she will be moving to Mumbai, India for a few months to work for a top advertising company.

Jigna in particular loves to produce illustrations and feels that her strengths lie in this and graphic design, however she loves all aspects of design and is able to adapt to various roles to meet briefs. Please have a look at her work and ask any questions or just say hello!

http://cargocollective.com/jignapateldesigns

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