Crossovers & Rewrites: Borders Over Asia

World Social Forum 2005
Museum of Contemporary Art, Porto Alegre, Brazil

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Cross Over and Rewrites: Borders over Asia was part of a programme by a group of cultural practitioners and activists from India for whom the philosophy behind presenting such a project at the World Social Forum, was situating culture as a site of dynamic political expression today with tremendous interventional and mobilization possibilities.

 

Being a region of racial and cultural confluences for centuries now, Asia continues to be a site of frequent border confrontations. Besides the many conflicts over race, religion, caste and gender within, the region is also struggling with borders imposed by retreating colonists. While still recovering from post-colonial upheavals it has found itself in
a grip of many new, often unseen forms of imperialisms. 'Cross Over and Rewrites' sought to map this specific cultural and political geography, focusing on Borders as a theme at this anti-globalisation forum.

 

Despite cliches of the ‘global village’ and ‘one world’ campaigns, Borders continue to dissect people and limit access to resources. 'Cross Over and Rewrites: Borders over Asia' addressed many such tangible and intangible borders: geographical territoriality, with its temporary and permanent ramifications, wars, refugees, immigration camps, no man's lands. And the more everyday borders of gender, community, caste, race and bifurcations between cities and villages, the home and the street, which we confront in our domestic, social and political spaces. Borders as artificial constructs dictate our decision making- from the State to a personal level, from fiscal priorities to neighborhood choices. They highlight the resultant segregation of US and the Other and the demonisation which inevitably follows such a divide.

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A range of artists have been included, from large collectives like Taringpadi with ample political influence in their community to individual artists with an intimate personal politic played out in their works. The media used include wood cut prints and videos as well as rally attire and merchandise on local trains. There is an emphasis on the India Pakistan borders as we come from this region.

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All the works have been collated and presented using popular techniques of mass production such as copying, printing on vinyl/paper or digitally onto CDs and DVDs. In this way we tried to question the hegemony of art markets which thrive on the uniqueness of an art object making it precious and inaccessible to a wider audience. The intention was to find out if art can really be democratic, non-elitist, widely accessible if the artist, producer and disseminators truly intend it.

 

All the artists whole heartedly shared their works in affirmation of their belief in the process called the World Social Forum. They waived customary artist fees and copyright formalities, even delivering the copies to us if they could afford to do so. In reciprocation, thousands of visitors to the Forum – from activists and artists to the common public, watched, listened and responded to the works on display on a scale and with such deep engagement that few art projects have an occasion to receive.

 

Despite widespread criticism of hegemony of mass media and the domination of its economic sphere by corporations/institutions, little formal attention has been given to developing counterculture. 'Cross Over and Rewrites: Borders over Asia' was an attempt in such a direction.

 

Shilpa Gupta, visual artist
Mamta Murthy, filmmaker

2005

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Concept and Facilitation:
Mamta Murthy & Shilpa Gupta, @culture art collective

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Organisation support:
Majlis and Point of View

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Fund support: Hivos

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@ Culture working group consisted of Bishakha Dutta, Gargi Sen, Madhusree Dutta. Mamta Murthy, Paromita Vohra, Shilpa Gupta and Tushar Joag.

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