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  Enamel paint, Acid Treatment & Lacquer on Metal

The past is never dead; it lives behind the layers of history and memories. A city may change to accommodate newer forms but somewhere beyond there is a nostalgic yearning for the old comfortable homely spaces that has become a part of its collective identity. The outdated old leftovers of our existence, objects and boxes which are thrown away by us are also laden with this comfy nostalgic traces of identities stored in our memories. How can these traces of memories in the old parts of the city and the thrown away objects be negotiated together? Rashesh’s work is an attempt to stitch together such imageries and objects which are immensely disparate in scale yet produce a similar effect on our psyche. These works evokes the sense of the city of Baroda (Vadodara), its old homes, bridged structures and cinema halls covered with painted advertisements. Being born and brought up in such quarters of the city, these parts fascinate and intrigue the artist. Their derelict presence seems to be repositories of memories that this old city he went through. Found objects like rusty metal sheets and old metal boxes with their brand names painted on them have remained the primary material in his work. The neglected boxes with parts of paint chipped away and organic formation of rust eating away the metal creates a sense of an abandoned, dejected space which is similar to that of the oldest parts of Vadodara.