Tangled Hierarchy: an interview with Jitish Kallat

ABSTRACT

This article presents an interview with artist Jitish Kallat, on the occasion of his curation of the exhibition, Tangled Hierarchy (2 June–10 September 2022), at the John Hansard Gallery (UK); and later staged at the Kochi-Muziris Biennale in India (13 December 2022–10 April 2023). The focal point of the exhibition are five brief notes written by Mahatma Gandhi on the backs of old envelopes, which Kallat viewed in the Archives of the University of Southampton. Penned on 2 June 1947, as a means of communication with Lord Mountbatten despite Gandhi undertaking a vow of silence, the envelopes pertain to the imminent partition of the Indian subcontinent. Opening on 2 June 2022, so marking 75 years of the momentous meeting, Tangled Hierarchy presented a carefully curated display of historically and geographically diverse contributions; establishing a complex, layered reading of histories, perspectives and meanings.

KEYWORDS:

• Curation
• Mahatma Gandhi
• India
• Jitish Kallat
• Partition
• Tangled hierarchy

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 In ensuring access to materials and permissions for reproductions, special thanks are extended to John Hansard Gallery, Archives and Special Collections at the University of Southampton Library (particularly the support of Karen Robson), the Partition Museum, Amritsar, and all of the individual artists included in the exhibition. Exhibition details at John Hansard Gallery are available online: https://jhg.art/events/jitish-kallat-tangled-hierarchy/.

2 See ‘Short Film on Tangled Hierarchy with Jitish Kallat’, John Hansard Gallery (produced by City Eye): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADC5tlt2qcc.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ed D’Souza

Ed D’Souza is Professor of Critical Practice at Winchester School of Art, University of Southampton (UK). He is Editor of Journal of Visual Art Practice. His books include India’s Biennale Effect (2016), Barcelona Masala: Narratives and Interactions in Cultural Space (2013) and Outside India: Dialogues and Documents of Art and Social Change (2012). His work has been exhibited widely including Bergen Kunstall 3,14 (2019), osloBIENNALEN (2019), India Habitat Centre (2019), Tate Exchange, Tate Modern (2018) and Kochi-Muziris Biennale (2014).

Jitish Kallat is an internationally acclaimed artist, living and working in Mumbai, India. He has exhibited widely at leading museums and institutions across the world, as well as major international biennales including the recent Venice Biennale 2019. His solo exhibitions at museums the Art Institute of Chicago, Bhau Daji Lad Museum (Mumbai), the Ian Potter Museum of Art (Melbourne), CSMVS Museum (Mumbai), the San Jose Museum of Art, Art Gallery of New South Wales (Sydney), Frist Art Museum (Nashville) and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. In 2017, the National Gallery of Modern Art (New Delhi) presented a mid-career survey of his work titled Here After Here 1992–2017 curated by Catherine David. Kallat was the curator and artistic director of Kochi-Muziris Biennale 2014.

Sunil Manghani

Sunil Manghani is Professor of Theory, Practice & Critique at Winchester School of Art, University of Southampton (UK). He is Editor of Journal of Visual Art Practice and Managing Editor of Theory, Culture & Society. His books include Image Studies (2013), Rhythm and Critique (2020), Zero Degree Seeing (2019), India’s Biennale Effect (2016) and Farewell to Visual Studies (2015). He curated Barthes/Burgin at the John Hansard Gallery (2016), along with Building an Art Biennale (2018) and Itinerant Objects (2019) at Tate Exchange, Tate Modern.