Artist Pakhi Sen's installations of sexuality in kitchens as well as her Kitchen Cocoon painting series on wood that I experienced at the Srishti Graduation Show got me intrigued about what was brewing in her mind and what she's been upto this year. Here's her take on 2018:
What's the nicest thing you did for someone in 2018?
Haha, I don't know how to answer that, but I feel overall, I've worked on improving my relationships with the people I love. I feel 2017 ended on a slightly sour note and I'm glad that this year, I was able to value my friends and family.
Has 2018 been a good year for you in terms of productivity and creativity? What all did you work on this year?
It's been quite a year for me. I created my final project at Srishti, which was pivotal in understanding and establishing my practice. I had a lot of interesting projects come my way and gave my first talk at the Brahmaputra Literary Festival, an experience I'll never forget. And I set up my studio space and co-working restaurant Studio Thali, which will start off in January but has been quite a journey. So overall, so hectic but so fulfilling.
Which film that you saw this year changed something in you?
There's so many, but two films that really impacted me this year were Dodeskaden by Kurosawa and Yiyi by Edward Yang.
Which song/s did you listen to on loop this year?
I can barely remember because there were so many, but a few that I distinctly remember bopping to -
Raingurl - Yaeji
Girl - The Internet
4:00 am - Taeko Ohnuki
I like it - Cardi B
Controller - Channel Tres
Apeshit - The Carters
Thank u, next - Ariana Grande
Best book you read this year?
The Tale of One Bad Rat by Bryan Talbot and Difficult Women by Roxane Gay
What's your 2018 takeaway?
I've gone through a lot of ups and downs. But the biggest learning has been understanding why I'm doing what I'm doing, finding so much comfort and refuge in my work. There was a switch where I stopped needing external validation to feel accomplished because I began feeling cocooned in my own relationship with my work, that was so liberating.
What's 2019 looking like for you? What are your goals/plans/dreams for the year ahead?
My number one priority is getting Studio Thali running, and fitting my routine within it. But other than that, more collaborations, opportunities and explorations. I have a lot of painting work to do and I'm eager to see where that goes because sometimes I feel like my style changes without me being very conscious of it. Also, just growing as a person, keeping my mental health balanced and learning as much as I can.
Follow Pakhi Sen's art experiments here.