Waswo X. Waswo
Encyclopedia
Waswo X. Waswo is an artist and writer most commonly associated with his chemical process sepia-toned photographs of India
, and also hand-colored portraits made at the artist’s studio in Udaipur, Rajasthan. Waswo’s first major first major book, India Poems: The Photographs, was in part a challenge to politically correct notions of the western artist's role in responding to Asia, and his work has been critiqued in the light of cultural theories that stem from Edward Said
and his book Orientalism
.
Waswo was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.A. He studied at the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee, and later at Studio Marangoni, the Centre for Contemporary Photography in Florence, Italy. After extensive worldwide travels he settled in India in 2001, where he organized an exhibition of his Indian landscapes and portraits with the help of Alliance Française, Kashi Art Gallery, and Cymroza Art Gallery. The exhibition, called "India Poems", traveled to Cochin, Bangalore, Bombay, Udaipur and Goa, and also traveled internationally to Colombo and Kandy in Sri Lanka. "India Poems" culminated in a showing at The Haggerty Museum of Art
in the artist's hometown of Milwaukee.
Waswo's sepia work has been compared to early 20th century photographers such as Edward Curtis, but his inclusion of self-portraiture sometimes draws analogies to postmodernists such as Cindy Sherman
. Waswo's work has encouraged debate on the ethical questions of photography, especially the question of a westerner's role in photographing a foreign land. The Indian writer and cultural theorist Ranjit Hoskote
makes a strong defense of Waswo's work in the foreword to India Poems, but also included in the book is an essay by Bangalore-based artist Pushpamala N.
titled "Photographing the Natives" which claims that Waswo follows in a long tradition of hegemonic and largely negative western depictions of the East.
Waswo's India Poems exhibitions and book were widely written about in India. An article by Curtis Carter eventually appeared in The International Yearbook of Aesthetics titled "Invented Worlds: India Through the Camera Lens of Waswo X. Waswo"
Since India Poems Waswo has created a series of studio portraits at his home in Udaipur
, Rajasthan, following the tradition of Indian studio portraitists such as those done by Lala Deen Dayal
. Waswo has collaborated with Rajesh Soni
, a local craftsman who hand-paints Waswo's digital prints. A portion of this new body of work has been published as the book Men of Rajasthan by Serindia Contemporary in Chicago. Waswo also has collaborated with the miniaturist painter Rakesh Vijay
to create an autobiographical picture-story of his life in India and the accompanying emotions of both alienation and the sense of western privilege. Waswo’s collaborations with Rajsh Soni and R. Vijay are collectively titled "A Studio in Rajasthan" and have been written about by London-based art critic Edward Lucie-Smith
.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, and also hand-colored portraits made at the artist’s studio in Udaipur, Rajasthan. Waswo’s first major first major book, India Poems: The Photographs, was in part a challenge to politically correct notions of the western artist's role in responding to Asia, and his work has been critiqued in the light of cultural theories that stem from Edward Said
Edward Said
Edward Wadie Saïd was a Palestinian-American literary theorist and advocate for Palestinian rights. He was University Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University and a founding figure in postcolonialism...
and his book Orientalism
Orientalism (book)
Orientalism is a book published in 1978 by Edward Said that has been highly influential and controversial in postcolonial studies and other fields. In the book, Said effectively redefined the term "Orientalism" to mean a constellation of false assumptions underlying Western attitudes toward the...
.
Waswo was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.A. He studied at the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee, and later at Studio Marangoni, the Centre for Contemporary Photography in Florence, Italy. After extensive worldwide travels he settled in India in 2001, where he organized an exhibition of his Indian landscapes and portraits with the help of Alliance Française, Kashi Art Gallery, and Cymroza Art Gallery. The exhibition, called "India Poems", traveled to Cochin, Bangalore, Bombay, Udaipur and Goa, and also traveled internationally to Colombo and Kandy in Sri Lanka. "India Poems" culminated in a showing at The Haggerty Museum of Art
Patrick and Beatrice Haggerty Museum of Art
The Partick and Beatrice Haggerty Museum of Art, sometimes referred to simply as "the Haggerty", is located at 13th and Clybourn Streets on the campus of Marquette University in downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States...
in the artist's hometown of Milwaukee.
Waswo's sepia work has been compared to early 20th century photographers such as Edward Curtis, but his inclusion of self-portraiture sometimes draws analogies to postmodernists such as Cindy Sherman
Cindy Sherman
Cindy Sherman is an American photographer and film director, best known for her conceptual portraits. Sherman currently lives and works in New York City. In 1995, she was the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship. She is represented by Sprüth Magers Berlin London in and Metro Pictures gallery in...
. Waswo's work has encouraged debate on the ethical questions of photography, especially the question of a westerner's role in photographing a foreign land. The Indian writer and cultural theorist Ranjit Hoskote
Ranjit Hoskote
Ranjit Hoskote is a contemporary Indian poet, art critic, cultural theorist and independent curator.-Early life and education:...
makes a strong defense of Waswo's work in the foreword to India Poems, but also included in the book is an essay by Bangalore-based artist Pushpamala N.
Pushpamala N.
Pushpamala N. is an artist based in Bangalore, India.Pushpamala N. was born in Bangalore. Her work has been described as performance photography, as she frequently uses herself as model in her own work...
titled "Photographing the Natives" which claims that Waswo follows in a long tradition of hegemonic and largely negative western depictions of the East.
Waswo's India Poems exhibitions and book were widely written about in India. An article by Curtis Carter eventually appeared in The International Yearbook of Aesthetics titled "Invented Worlds: India Through the Camera Lens of Waswo X. Waswo"
Since India Poems Waswo has created a series of studio portraits at his home in Udaipur
Udaipur
Udaipur , also known as the City of Lakes, is a city, a Municipal Council and the administrative headquarters of the Udaipur district in the state of Rajasthan in western India. It is located southwest of the state capital, Jaipur, west of Kota, and northeast from Ahmedabad...
, Rajasthan, following the tradition of Indian studio portraitists such as those done by Lala Deen Dayal
Lala Deen Dayal
Lala Deen Dayal was an Indian photographer. His photography career began in the mid-1870s as a commissioned photographer, eventually he set up studios in Indore, Mumbai and Hyderbad; he became the court photographer to the sixth Nizam of Hyderabad, Mahbub Ali Khan, Asif Jah VI, who awarded him...
. Waswo has collaborated with Rajesh Soni
Rajesh Soni
Rajesh Soni is an artist living in Udaipur, Rajasthan, who has become known primarily for his abilities to hand paint digital photographs. He is the son of artist Lalit Soni, and the grandson of Prabhu Lal Soni, who was once court photographer to the Maharana Bhopal Singh of Mewar...
, a local craftsman who hand-paints Waswo's digital prints. A portion of this new body of work has been published as the book Men of Rajasthan by Serindia Contemporary in Chicago. Waswo also has collaborated with the miniaturist painter Rakesh Vijay
Rakesh Vijay
Rakesh Vijay , professionally known as R. Vijay, is a Rajasthani miniaturist best known for his collaborative work with American artist Waswo X. Waswo. R...
to create an autobiographical picture-story of his life in India and the accompanying emotions of both alienation and the sense of western privilege. Waswo’s collaborations with Rajsh Soni and R. Vijay are collectively titled "A Studio in Rajasthan" and have been written about by London-based art critic Edward Lucie-Smith
Edward Lucie-Smith
John Edward McKenzie Lucie-Smith is a British writer, poet, art critic, curator, broadcaster and author of exhibition catalogues.-Biography:Lucie-Smith was born in Kingston, Jamaica, moving to the United Kingdom in 1946...
.
External links
- Waswo X. Waswo, www.waswoxwaswo.net
- Waswo X. Waswo, blog
- Waswo X. Waswo, Youtube
- Waswo X. Waswo, Flickr
- Amrita Gupta-Singh, Interview with Waswo.
- Murali N. Krishnaswamy, "Lyrical Images", The Hindu, January 7, 2007. Review of the book.
- Matters of Art, "A Studio in Rajasthan"
- The Pallette Art Gallery, Waswo X. Waswo
- Waswo X. Waswo on CNN-IBN, broadcast about the Delhi show. Aired nationally in India.
- Waswo X. Waso on Washington Post, India's Art Appreciation Grows With Investment
- Slideshow of Waswo's Work
- Gallery Espace
- Serindia Publications
- Serindia Gallery