Turning mundane into extraordinary

of the unseen elements of everyday still life, as Rashmi Rai, in her first solo photography exhibition – ‘Breath and Boundaries – explores mundane street doorways.

The exhibition at Triveni Kala Sangam from December 18 to 27 is an array of 21 photographs exploring the symbolic nature of doors as a protection, a passage or a transition. Seemingly commonplace to the layman’s eye, she depicts the unseen elements of everyday still life, glimpses, for instance, of a crooked street, a decrepit corner, a chance glance into an alley, a shuttered door, etc, that form a good part of our subconscious reminisces.

Curated by Gargi Seth, Rashmi’s first solo show features a melange of cities from the lanes of Udaipur to unnoticed streets of Spain over a period of five years. A business management graduate, Rashmi pursued art since 2001 and has since made images with elements of abstraction and minimalism in landscapes, still life objects and expressive art portraits.

The concept of the show derives from the various emotions and the enigma that the doors invoke in every individual. Doors are at once, forbidding and inviting. They may not always lead to places but take you to a place within yourself. A door is a key, a boundary and a transportation portal that connects you to yourself. ‘Breath and boundaries’ is an attempt at exploring the in between connections and transitions in space and time.

Rashmi’s style of work is about the interplay of light and her spontaneity with her camera. Her art explores the interplay of our jaded, bland, urban existence with vistas of rustic charm, or of faraway town allure. Her images ask us to pay attention to scenes and details habitually passed over, presenting beauty in unlikely places.

“My motivation of turning to the camera comes from my love for paintings. I always wanted to be a painter. But after understanding light, form and colour with the camera, and the process of ‘making’ an instant picture in the camera, made it achievable to capture moments faster that a painted canvas. This exhibition brings forth the everyday beauty of doors and architecture laden with humdrum art”, says the artist, who also loves to dabble in charcoals, watercolours and mixed media.