On Big Drawings

Avantika Bawa:
Art, Exhibitions, and Installations

Another Documentation (study),

Digital print of site-specific installation,

NOIDA, India, 2012

https://ditchprojects.com/Avantika-Bawa

A Pink Scaffold : The Collapse

Painted scaffolds, dimensions variable, 2020-present

Kutch, India

Somewhere in the vastness of the Rann of Kutch stands the second iteration of the ‘Pink Scaffold’.

This version was reinstalled in a more open and infinite location than the first,

with much less foot traffic allowing the work and landscape to be more

in tune with each other; the landscape, the work and the lone viewer.

The plan was to deinstall by end March 2020 when the land softens and the

work can start to sink and erode. But then the pandemic struck.

And The Pink Scaffold still stands, in solitude and solidarity.

Watching, waiting, hoping, and now slowly collapsing.

Video in collaboration with Nipun Prabhakar and Parikshit Nema.

Photos: Nipun Prabhakar and NB Morana.

A Pink Scaffold in the Rann, Kutch, India

Dimensions variable, Painted scaffolds, 2019-20

A Pink Scaffold in the Rann, is the third installation of the ‘Scaffold Series’. Here scaffolds are transformed into an object of beauty through the color pink and the location of the salt desert, thus ceasing to be an object of function. With A Pink Scaffold in the Rann, I build yet another scaffold that highlights the beauty of the vast landscape, its location by an international border, and its current state of flux due to climate change, in a way that is visually impactful and conceptually powerful.

Mineral Spirits - Site-specific installation for Portland2016, A Biennial of Contemporary Art. Presented by Disjecta. Astor Hotel, Astoria, OR. Curator Michelle Grabner

Paint, scaffolding, looped audio.
Dimensions - 68'x43'x23'

In Mineral Spirits, the decayed and darkened lobby of the Astor Hotel is the location of an assemblage of non-functional scaffolds and recorded sounds. The scaffolds, painted in a soft metallic gold, hint at the hotel’s glorious past. Stage lightning and residual natural sunlight interact to produce subtly changing shadows of the scaffold on the floor and the ceiling. Stretches of silence are interrupted with modified field recordings of the construction of the scaffold, invoking the spirits of guests past and present.

Scaffold Interventions
Dimensions variable, 3D printed

During the pandemic-induced shutdown, I collaborated (remotely) with my colleague to 3-D print a series of mini scaffolds. These miniature marvels are a treat, and have allowed me to create temporary installations in minutes and in the craziest of locations. I intend to continue this series of micro-installations, which often become interventions as well.