Ashokkumar Mistry
The Desert Mountains & Dreary Glaciers are My Refuge (or The follicle distancing in glacial increments), 2021
Digital video | 10.16mins
In 2020, I was commissioned by DASH to produce a short film for their series Awkward Bastards at Home, reflecting experiences as a Disabled artist during lockdowns of the early days of the pandemic.
This film ‘The Desert Mountains & Dreary Glaciers are My Refuge (or ‘The follicle distancing in glacial increments’) ’ tells the story of isolation, loss, and is formed by documentation of the year’s banal oddities including the glacial growth of the hair on my head. The work is inspired by Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein which from which I draw parallels to life during lockdowns when we peaked at each other's domestic dishevelment through online portals and we looked at ourselves in utter disgust.
Every Artwork I have created has started with some form of writing – usually a poem. The writing locates the intention of my work and plays like a mantra in my mind. My neurology and creative approach generates a myriad of creative outputs in a range of media that perhaps appear disconnected. My work is interdisciplinary – primarily visual and sculptural works using many media, writing as a critical tool, and performance as a convergence and an enacting of the many processes of my work." Ashokkumar Mistry
The film is based on his poem 'The Lonesome' which can be read here https://ashokdmistry.com/portfolio/the-desert-mountains-dreary-glaciers-are-my-refuge/
This film ‘The Desert Mountains & Dreary Glaciers are My Refuge (or ‘The follicle distancing in glacial increments’) ’ tells the story of isolation, loss, and is formed by documentation of the year’s banal oddities including the glacial growth of the hair on my head. The work is inspired by Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein which from which I draw parallels to life during lockdowns when we peaked at each other's domestic dishevelment through online portals and we looked at ourselves in utter disgust.
Every Artwork I have created has started with some form of writing – usually a poem. The writing locates the intention of my work and plays like a mantra in my mind. My neurology and creative approach generates a myriad of creative outputs in a range of media that perhaps appear disconnected. My work is interdisciplinary – primarily visual and sculptural works using many media, writing as a critical tool, and performance as a convergence and an enacting of the many processes of my work." Ashokkumar Mistry
The film is based on his poem 'The Lonesome' which can be read here https://ashokdmistry.com/portfolio/the-desert-mountains-dreary-glaciers-are-my-refuge/
About the artist:
Ashokkumar Mistry
https://ashokdmistry.com/ | @ashokdmistry
Ashokkumar Mistry is a multidisciplinary artist and writer working in the UK for the past 25 years. By subverting technologies, he challenges conventional ways of making and viewing art. “As a person who sees and experiences the world differently, much of my work is concerned with how I make sense of my interactions with the world around me”. Mistry works across visual artforms, performance and moving images and was commissioned to create two interactive digital public artworks by BBC Leicester (2005), presented work at the Decibel Expo (2003), and presented a participatory installation for Southbank Centre (2011). Mistry was also commissioned to co-develop an exhibition in Taiwan for National Cheng Kung University (2016), which led to an invitation to present at the NEXT ART TAINAN Festival (2018).
After identifying as neurodivergent (ND) in his 40s, Mistry has focused on researching and writing about disability, neurodiversity and intersectionality. His research and writing have been commissioned and published through UnLimited, A-N and Disability Arts Online (DAO). Across 2020 Mistry created a series for DAO titled DNR_RND consisting of articles and interviews exploring difficulties faced by disabled artists and the impact of Covid on their creativity. The writing has led to many speaker opportunities representing the ND artist perspective. Mistry is currently Associate Artist with DAO, a Development Artist with The Spark Arts and a Fellow of the International Association Of Art Critics (AICA-UK). |