Photo Courtesy of Paul Eekhoff / ROM

DROP CLOTH
Swapnaa Tamhane

On view until May 13, 2023
Opening Reception: March 25, 2:00-4:00pm

The Hamilton Artists Inc. is pleased to announce the opening of DROP CLOTH, a brand new exhibition in our Cannon Gallery featuring the works of Swapnaa Tamhane.

The works included in Swapnaa Tamhane’s solo exhibition in our Cannon Gallery propose to consider the medium of drawing as one that can be about an accumulation, as a series of marks made by many over time. The title DROP CLOTH refers to heavier industrially produced cotton that is pinned to the long print beds of Ajrakh block printers working in the desert region of Kutch, Gujarat.

These drop cloths or achadiya absorb the residues and excessive resist that seeps through during the block printing process, and are a record of the action and sound of wood blocks as they repeatedly stamp cloth for commercial production. The achadiya is the material that is never meant to be seen, celebrated, or considered as something of value, what Tamhane likens to a diasporic experience. When dyed in indigo, residual marks of Ajrakh and Tamhane’s motifs are revealed and create a self-generating composition of a layering of marks, traces, and ghost prints made by several hands working over these surfaces. In response to the revealed prints and residues, Tamhane has applied mirrors on the achadiya, almost drawing with them and creating a surface that creates reflection and carries light.

The foundation of her framing about mark-making, drawing, and layering connects to the poet/saint Kabir, as a metaphor, in how his poetry and songs became a community of authors over centuries. Kabir was a cotton weaver from the 15th Century, and his words travelled with pilgrimage and trade routes in what is now India. His poetry became multi-layered and interwoven with several languages and dialects. Eventually, the oral began to merge with the written, and form, meaning, repetition, and improvisation began to blur. Kabir becomes a site or index for Tamhane to think about drawing as a palimpsest or a community/collective.

Alongside the achadiya are two drawings that are scenes from the homes and altars of weavers, as well as a recycled plastic weaving made from waste garbage bags and biscuit wrappers.

Learn more about DROP CLOTH.

Photo courtesy of Yihan Li

Sometimes Guilty, Always Responsible
Anran Guo

On view until May 13, 2023
Opening Reception: March 25, 2:00-4:00pm

A piece of blank paper symbolizes a protest movement across China in 2022. A fire triggered the movement during enforced COVID quarantine, the gates were locked from the outside, and residents could not escape from the building.

Years of research and advocation in fighting against censorship, living as an immigrant across the sea, guilt, fear, resistance and exhaustion are like small bones in the throat. Selected works old and new by Anran Guo, Sometimes Guilty, Always Responsible develops social critique and self-critique; questions the privileges and responsibilities of individuals when confronting social-political issues from the aspect of censorship and self-censorship.

“There was definitely nothing on the paper, but we know what’s on there.”

Learn more about Sometimes Guilty, Always Responsible.

As an artist-run centre, Hamilton Artists Inc. (the Inc.) empowers artists of all career levels to take risks with their contemporary visual arts practices and present their work in a critical context.

We are open to the public Wednesdays-Saturdays 12-5pm, and Fridays 12-6pm. Admission is free. Private viewing appointments are also available. Read our COVID-19 visitor guidelines.

Accessibility: The Inc. is a physically accessible venue. Click here for detailed information.

155 James Street North
Hamilton, ON L8R 2K9
www.theinc.ca | 905.529.3355

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Contact: programming@theinc.ca

The Inc. gratefully acknowledges the support of the Ontario Arts Council, City of Hamilton, Canada Council for the Arts, Incite Foundation for the Arts, and all of its members, donors, sponsors, and programming partners.