10 Questions with Sudesh Prasad

Sudesh Prasad began working as an artist in New York in 1986 in the East Village scene and has since lived and worked in various cities. After a pause in regular work between 2003-2018, he resumed work in the studio in 2019 and now works full time in the studio, pushing towards a body of abstract works, focusing on the collaborative nature of the artist and the viewer.

Prasad’s works and installations have been shown in New York City, Vienna, Rome, Venice (1995 Biennale), Chicago and Cambridge and his work is present in numerous private as well as public collections.

www.sudeshprasad.com | @sudeshkprasad

Cool Empire II | DESCRIPTION

Cool Empire - the first series of photographs, installations, and the catalog are from the ’90s and were a comment upon nationalism, empire and colonialism, and “soft power” through culture. The series was informed by Edward Said’s Culture and Imperialism (1993).

Cool Empire II a re-examination of the above with emphasis upon the nature of the viewer and the act of seeing.

These works are prints from European painting torn from books and overpainted. This is not a refutation of the artists, rather an attempt to re-focus the notion of the viewer and their place in the nature of images, painting, and looking at art.

Prints of works by Titian, Parmigianino, Giorgione, and others are overpainted with casein paint - a nod to traditional methods - and cover sections of the paintings. The intent is to focus upon the painting as a whole and ask the viewer to contemplate the nature of their relationship to painting as artifact - making the mass reproduced print a singular work by the addition of the overpaint and the artist’s signature.

The subjects of the original paintings - portraits, religious motifs, allegory - become irrelevant. The viewer must address the notion of the original painting as an object and inference the new “original” created by overpainting.

INTERVIEW

You have worked and traveled extensively all over the world. What is your favorite experience so far as an artist? And what are your favorite cities out of the ones you have lived in?

Out of all the cities I have lived and worked in, Vienna and New York are still the two favorites. New York is where I grew up and also had my first shows and was part of a great scene in the 1980s in the East Village. Vienna is a special place, unchanging yet vibrant and welcoming as a place for artists, musicians, and filmmakers. I have recently set up a studio in Puglia, Italy, which is in the country but very conducive to new abstract works.

As far as experiences, the first solo shows I had in Vienna and Rome led to working in Venice as part of the Aperto95 show in conjunction with the Biennale; that was a great experience as an artist.

In your paintings, you insert what you call “universally recognizable objects,” such as lemons, circles, geometric shapes, the human figure. Where did you get your imagery from? And what meanings do you want to convey with those objects?

I do not try to personally convey any meaning specifically through the objects or forms. I believe my work should stand independently of me and my intent. The composition of a drawing or painting uses these forms as a starting point for interaction between the work and the viewer. Any meaning is thus independent of my intent - which I believe is what a successful work should evoke. The shapes are universal - so most viewers will bring their own meaning or association with the forms and use that to interpret my works.

In your artist statement, you refer to Paul Valéry and his quote, “Seeing is forgetting the name of the thing one sees.” How important is the perception of the viewers for your work? And how do you engage with the viewers?

Perception is paramount when interacting with art - it is how we achieve context. The viewer must come to their own conclusions and meaning in a piece. To engage the viewer, as I mentioned, I use universal forms and shapes. This starts the process of seeing beyond the immediate, compositional aspect of the work. In my recent work, I use fewer elements and forms within a composition which I believe engages the viewer to fill in the metaphorical blanks.

How would you define yourself as an artist? And what is the primary goal of your art?

I am not sure I could “define” myself. Perhaps I should let my work speak for me on that one.

The goal? To get ideas, I have in my head out and on to paper, canvas, with sculpture…

I continue to do work in the hope that in the end, the entire oeuvre will say something clear that I have not been able to do in one or two works or series of works. If I could say “it” I would no longer need to go to the studio every day and try to figure these things out.

Your series Cool Empire II is a re-examination of a previous series, Cool Empire, that you worked on in the 90s. The original series was a reflection on themes such as nationalism, empire, and colonialism. How much of the original series did you use in Cool Empire II and on the contrary, what have you changed?

I have used old art monographs I acquired in the 90s and kept until now to use as material for the CE II series. These are much more subtle. I would answer this with a question: 

Many people know and love the Mona Lisa or Michaelangelo’s David or Pieta; the salient point is “why?”.

In Cool Empire II you superimpose geometric shapes on classic paintings by Italian masters, almost as if you wanted to cover the obvious subject to show us the overly looked upon details. How did you choose the original paintings and the details to cover and show?

I chose the paintings from artists known in the Western Canon: Parmagianino, Tintoretto, Caravaggio, and not only Italian masters, e.g, Ribera, Ruebens, and Velasquez. They do reference John Baldasari (superficially); the point was to focus the eye on other parts of the works and ask the viewer to consider their relation to famous works and by extension, the ideas of culture and nationalism. As I mentioned before: it is facile to like something; the question is, why does one admire some art?

Let’s now talk about the future. What are the things you look forward to the most after the end of the Covid-19 pandemic?

Okay, the future… - it is always in a state of arriving. I look forward to traveling again. This involves going to my favorite galleries such as the Kunsthistorisches in Vienna, The National Gallery in London, of course, seeing distant friends and making and showing work in person again. The virtual world is tiresome and isolating.

I look forward to the physical, as place and memory are important in my life and work.

Over the past year, we have witnessed major changes in the art world. Do you find that the shift to digital exhibitions and art fairs has helped you promote your work?

This requires a more nuanced answer. I have exhibited and sold works purely online, and that is a huge leap forward to reach many more people and other artists. However, this means there is also a proliferation of more loosely or uncurated shows and “galleries/platforms” trying to sell whatever is uploaded to a platform. I believe curation is important as a filter between the artist and collectors/viewers.

For example, some of my work - Elegy I - is a site-specific work with one tonne of rocks. Hard to make that digital and also to convey the scale and impact of this on a screen.

In my case, a balance of both an online presence and physical gallery/museum association works best. Also, working with galleries also provides feedback and curatorial insight that is vital to creating great art.

We all miss a lot of things from our lives pre-Covid. But is there one thing that you have discovered over the last year that you will keep with you in the future?

The unexpected will happen to all of us. Covid makes clear that relationships and friendships are hard work, and I have committed to cultivating both in my life.

And lastly, what do you think (and wish) the future holds for us?

I hope we as a collective society will recognize that our era is no different, in perception by its contemporaneous populace, than any other. The Romans, Victorians, or society in the Italian renaissance all believed they were the apex of progress and enlightenment. Now and the future may be a good time to think a little harder and be a bit more reflective. It can’t hurt, right?