Photoshoot for Adalaj ki Vav
Watercolour on Paper
16×11 in
2020
“We shape our buildings, and afterwards our buildings shape us”
Winston Churchill
Century-old buildings that adorned our country are symbolic of the past it left behind. Mithil Thaker’s depiction of the Adalaj ki Vav in Gujarat reminds us today, on World Heritage Day, the significance of heritage sites. As many tourists flock to this heritage site to capture its beautiful architectural embellishments in their photos, it has become a tourist’s tendency that rather than absorbing the surrounding site, they are more engaged in peering through their camera lens and the artist keenly illustrates this in the painting. In this work, he was able to interweave the cultural aspects of the place with its sense of experience. Certainly, with a different approach of his subject, the top-angle view of the camera lens appearing as the stepwell is perhaps in contrast to the various photos found of the stepwell which are taken from a lower angle. His illustrations of tourist spots, do capture distinctively the aura and essence of the place. Although he has hearing impairment that does not hinder him in his creative process, all the more it enabled him to develop a keen eye and an intuitiveness that makes his illustrations conceptually animated. This perhaps, is what gives a new perspective to these heritage sites, more than just a structure, it is our interaction with it, that shapes the culture around it.
Mithil Thaker is a young artist from Ahmedabad who got his diploma in applied arts from C N College of Ahmedabad. His attention to detail attributes to his eidetic memory which makes his portraits quite realistic. His artwork was selected for the Derwent Art Prize 2020 in London. His paintings were also selected for the All India Art competition and exhibition at Hyderabad 2018.
Do let us know what you think and mention which Heritage site is your favourite!
