26 Sep Reincarnation

A Photographic series by Farhad Rahman during the 4th Episode of Uronto Residential Art Exchange Program in Lakhotia Palace(Jaminder house) in Barisal, Bangladesh.

The artworks placed on the architectural surrounding of the Lakhotia House were embellished with faded memories formulated with the combination of two fundamental sources; one, which included various historical books and second, personal interview with Mukherjee. The written sources were concentrated on the political, economic, and social concerns of the 1950 and 1971 riots, while a one-on-one conversation with Mandira Mukherjee, who is one of the Family member of the palace and the last person who stayed back in Bangladesh as she got married in a family in Barisal, Bangladesh. As part of the interaction segments during the exchange program, Mandira Mukherjee shared many of her memories and brought new light to the historical understanding of Lakhotia existence.

Her stories were based on the emotional journey of her childhood along with her witnessing the socio-political and economic hurt during those times. Therefore, the artists stitched these two sources together to tailor artworks representing their responses associated with the Lakhotia House.

Rahman, by using photography as his medium to play, reincarnated visual memories derived by Mukherjee’s shared moments. For example, her coming to the balcony on several occasions, represented through light and color manipulation, the coincidental incidents described as funny Ghost stories, the death during the Riot where 300 people were killed in that palace. Some photos have metaphoric elements too, by adding which, Rahman tried to highlight those spots where the memories took place long before. He reawakened those faded memories in the dead structural space of the Lakhotia House.
At a glance its the glimpse of the oral stories that Rahman captured in his brain and then expressed those abstract visuals through his photography successfully.

Title: Reincarnation
Artist: Farhad Rahamn with fellow artists and community in Lakhotia, Barisal.
Time and place: Forth Episode of UORNTO Residential Art Exchange Program at Barisal 2014/15