Negotiating History- Finding Path of Jina

Mapping cultural Topographies through Body and Space

Performed on 16th Dec 2022

Jiwaji University Jaipur Art Summit 2022

The performance was a project to introspect the history of Gwalior city to explore the present and past through interaction and collaboration. It was about decoding history through cultural and spiritual lenses. I performed with headgear and costume to match Gwalior's cities' monuments, buildings, and sites ( like the Gwalior fort and Gopachal archaeological sites.

I was carrying a trunk full of city stones that have embedded the history of the city, photos of monuments, soil, flower essence, and soil for 500 meters. The walk collaborated with the student of the sports department of Jiwaji University, and a few students carried the stones along. The idea was to gaze into the city with The Latitude and longitudinal perspective giving an inside view to the Ecological- social-cultural aspect of the city, a city which emerged in the 8th century Ad has seen so much transformation and lived rich art, culture, and historical happening. 

The present-day city has clouded with the environmental issue of poor air quality. Gwalior has been breathing in and breathing out the changes from the ages. The idea is to observe, Live, and experience cultural topographies through body and space. This performance was also an attempt to see oneself through cultural and philosophical roots. This city has celebrated Jain philosophy for thousands of years and wanted to gaze at self through a Spiritual lens and wanted the audiences to see themselves through the same lens. I gave them a ball made out of wheat dough and asked audiences to create a Sculptural form of what they see in terms of self and asked them to place it in a site that forms one more historical site.

The performance enables an opportunity for the artist and audiences to read the soul of the cities from past and present. The concept opens up to decode the gird zone transformation over 1200 years. The metamorphosis has been gradual: few things have remained the same (Historical monuments. Palaces, temples, and archaeological sites), and the city has seen changes over the years. Every generation has added tone to the gird zone, which needs to be decoded, with Latitude and longitudinal perspectives through the body and live action. 

The concept gave scope to express mainly through the body: spontaneous or processed response to the Grid zone. This performance allowed audiences to look into local and global perspectives on the oral or written stories of the present and past, observe and respond to present ecological social-cultural context grasp through monuments, customs, and traditions learning and respond through body and space.

Dimple B Shah 9th Jan 2023