Bharat Sikka: Matter, Amsterdam

Matter is a new series of works by photographer Bharat Sikka. Featured on the cover of Aesthetica Issue 52, Sikka is an outstanding photographer commissioned by the likes of The New York Times, Wallpaper, Vanity Fair and Vogue India. His new images are in a variety of formats, blending studio, street, landscape and portrait photography into a reflection of the “new” India, an ancient culture colliding with contemporary realities. From 25 September until 29 September his photos will appear as part of the Unseen Photo Fair in Amsterdam at The KunstKerk.

Refusing to shy away from the varied nature of India’s visual topography, Sikka utilises muted shades and faded colour. All of the images are beautifully composed, each showing contrasting moments of alienation, energy, teenage irreverence and macabre allure. Also jumping between high and low art, the artist places the natural against the artificial: the peaks of the Himalayas are echoed in the folds and creases of a plastic sheet, while the unsettling gleam of a plastic-masked figure contrasts with the sensuous portraits of young men and women. Continually adding to the project, his website www.mattershow.com documents new images, and will continue to do so for the next year.

Bharat Sikka: Matter, The KunstKerk – Prinseneiland 89 – 1013 LM Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Credits
1. Bharat Sikka, Matter, courtesy of the artist and Julian Meijer Associés.