Shortlist for Iyarki grant
Shortlisted for Iyarki grant for the proposal ‘Collective memory of a shoreline’ based on Trivandrum shoreline.
Project 365 virtual exhibition
Photos from the ‘Project 365 based on Tiruvannamalai’ part of the virtual exhibition at the Magnet galleries in Melbourne.
On Kara weaves
Chitra’s journey of Kara weaves in Cranbrook Academy of Arts book accompanied by Mani chettan’s image from the local weaving society.
Salt, Pepper & silverlinings
The upgraded look of cover page of Salt, Pepper & silverlinings edited by Abirami and Babitha.
Salt, Pepper & silverlinings
Grandmother series of photos getting published in Salt, Pepper & silverlinings edited by Abirami and Babitha.
Grandmother’s hands!
As my grandmother now at 102, holds various things in her hand!
Making an inclusive mountain
ETP trust’s Project 365 based on Tiruvannamalai is published in Google Arts & Culture. Making an inclusive mountain also showcases my theme Based on Religion, Politics and Cinema of Tamil Nadu.
Lost reflections
Article on how weeds are choking the Kuttandu water ways and its effect on social economy. Online article is here.
The State of Architecture
The state of Architecture exhibition at NGMA Mumbai showcased some of the Baker building photographs as part of the timeline.
Threads with Kara weaves!
Recently made a few of these tiny videos for Kara weaves! A video posted by Seema Krishnakumar (@seemskk) on Mar 22, 2016 at 3:51am PDT A video posted by Seema Krishnakumar (@seemskk) on Mar 21, 2016 at 12:14pm PDT
TN 25
I’m an Auto man! Auto man who knows all the routes, have fair rate!” (Naan Autokaaran Autokaaran Naalum Therinja Rootukaaran Nyayamulla Roatukaaran, Nallavanga Kootukaaran) – Rajnikanth / Basha Tiruvannamalai’s autos as windows to region’s politics, cinema and religion. The carrier often reflects its owner’s individual leanings and tastes. The series encapsulate the spirit of Tamil culture …
Brick
Lovely to see photo along some other wonderful brick structures. Brick by Phaidon press.
Political Affiliations
A glimpse of Tamil Nadu political images and iconography. I can’t quiet say where its heading, but certainly the affiliations are much life size and different from many other parts of the country.
Land of the lamp bearers
Cover photo for Gargi’s novel Land of the lamp bearers!
Let’s travel somewhere!
A pleasure to see full blown pictures of Meghalaya on the web! Thank you Let’s Travel Somewhere!
Pride of Vernacular Architecture
Pride of vernacular architecture, a photo feature on Padmanabhapuram palace published in today’s The Hindu Metro plus. Earlier blog post is here.
Washing!
So this would be the first officially published instagram from me! Interestingly appearing in India pre election web edition of The Guardian. Subramanian, the mobile vendor goes here in The Guardian.
A muddy crochet mat!
Then there was this night when I knew stars wander not just in skies but on the muddy soils of tiny villages in Tamil Nadu. Not that I was unaware of the tiny dots and zig zag lines that adorn the humble courtyards of South Indian homes, but the realisation these everyday artists knew very …
Smell of memories
How to smell memories? It does take time…
Red checks and floral jackets
The story on Kochin Kavaya, the traditional dress of Anglo Indians of Portugese descent was published in The Hindu – Kochi Metro edition. A longer version of the same appears on the Kochi post. At the suburban alleys of islet Mulavukad, the air still carries the sights and smell of Portugese legacy across the lagoons. Leisurely …
On looking good!
Lakshmi on an early morning mission to clean up the front yard at the ancestral home! “I dont look good, I’m old!”, She reacted to her first photo on the screen. “Doesn’t matter! I like old people”, I replied. Then a momentary change to shyness over her uncovered chest! Ah, wait…there emerges the confident version …
Waddling along in Kuttanad!
The story of ducks and duck farmers from Kuttanad published in The Hindu – Sunday magazine today! The write up goes here and the slideshow goes here. In Kuttanad, Kerala’s rice bowl, fields turn gold. Harvesters are abuzz, hurrying to reap the field before the summer rains strike. But as soon as the noises die …
Sketches from a night fish market!
Half of my night visits to this market had been futile! I mostly returned with dark or blur pictures, often to answer the impatient fisherlady folks that I’m trying again! They almost stopped asking me for prints and I felt dejected. But there’s something that takes you back to this night market – yes, its …
Aging Kavaya!
I always loved such Indo-Portugese names ending with D’Costa, D’Cunha, Sikkera and many more that sounded very surreal in Kerala landscape. Certain corners of Kochi fills you with such colonial surrealism – the deeper you dig one could hear stories from another time. Litanies of Lanthan batheri must be the most recent event in literature …
The not so slowly death of Kuttanad
A slightly long piece written for Kochi post. Mithrakkary, my ancestral islet village that once used to wake up to the hoots of early morning water canoes now rattles on vrooming bikes over the maze of bridges and roads. Dasan, a fish vendor on his traditional canoe often falls late these days to his counter …
Theyyathar
The photo of mundu men on the book cover by Green books. Thanks Rajesh!
Water weed’s own land
Every household closer to the canals in Kuttanad own a private step to the waterbody. There was a time this seemed a luxury to the city dweller in me. Weeds that wade the canals have never been a botheration to my eyes until a few years ago. The realization that the water below the green …
Faces behind a thousand mud pots!
Published in Kochi Post A few days before the mighty Pongala festival that falls every year during the Malayalam month of Kumbham, the host city of Trivandrum rearranges itself to accommodate all the knick knacks that comes with the festival season. Of the lot, the most visible being the red mud pots that suddenly crop …
In The Hindu
The Hindu Sunday Magazine publishes the pongala story in national edition. Here is the slide show and the text on The Hindu web edition.
City revisited!
I’m back to my city in the Southern tip of India after a significant three years far away in New York. So many things have changed. The local festival season of Pongala is a great time to roam over the bustling suburbs, to explore the recent trends of my lovely city. As I walked, I …
Pongala nights
The discovery of Pongala nights occurred very late in my rational-irreligious life after all these years in Trivandrum. But it came with some surprises that I’m beginning to enjoy these nights beyond its religiosity. All these days, women invade the public spaces with so much vigour that other wise seem extremely hostile in all our …
Before the whitewash!
Two years ago while passing through one of the northern Kerala districts, I had the first glance of a hand painted Sreenivasan. It was one of the most unexpected hand painted mollywood star finds for several reasons. Even when the integrality of Sreenivasan in Mollywood is unquestionable, a hand painted Sreenivasan on a second thought …
The Jackfruit plucker
Kanakkarayi, the rustic village man stood in the rain after his Onam duty to bring down a bountiful jackfruit from the yard. On one more photo, the happy man separated the fruit and its fibers, otherwise an arduous process.
TERI book
Another Architecture book from India published by TERI, and a few of the Baker shots published again.
Running on empty
A photo that was taken back in 2008 while traveling in Punjab that rusted in my memory got a new lease of life as Brandon Hoops of Ethno | Traveler noticed it from afar. We had a long chat about the story behind the shot and challenges for women documentary photographers in India. He has published a …
Angel wings
Angel Wings from Seema Krishnakumar on Vimeo. Finally the happy little interview with Margot Carr is up! Oh..the joy..the joy of seeing it alive after so many software mishaps!
A family portrait from Brazil!
Political families never intrigued me and it will ever! After all I also live in a country run by fathers, mothers, sons, daughters and uncles. Just that curiosity runs high when you reach a new country to see another family portrait flashing across election hoardings. Former governor of the state of Pará in Brazil Jader …
Ah! the crab man..
The tiny island of São João is still in slumber from the late night new year party and booze. But someone did wake up a little early, guzzled an early mug of beer and went crabbing for the new year feast. At an unexpected camera, he excitedly opened his sack of crabs and stood plain like a …
A thousand stitches…
A thousand stitches ran across the mounts and valleys of the lazy golden plateau lying under the fingers of tailor Chandran Pillai. His dull tailoring shop brightened up in soon to be departing temple frills hanging above the table. The village men behind me cheered him, ‘ah! she found the handsomest man in the village …
Cowbird!
Always use to wonder where my pieces of photos would fit in the larger puzzle of life or would it just remain as self expression. But finally there came Cowbird and its saga of Occupy where some of my tiny observations seemed fitting. It needs writing ~ while I lost most of my writing skills …
Architecture in India
Photographs of the Baker buildings being published in the compilation ‘Architecture in India- since 1990’.
Bodhi commons
A photo series on the beginnings of Occupy Wall Street was published in Bodhi commons. See it here.
#occupywallstreet
Sept 17, 2011 — On the very first day of Occupy Wall Street, standing with not less than a five hundred large crowd, quiet unaware of where it’s all heading to. There were no leaders, people gathered in groups and talked their mind. There were all kinds of things from corporate greed to public transport …
The Pub Manager
The Pub Manager from Seema Krishnakumar on Vimeo. A former New York police department detective, now enjoy running his family business, an Irish pub in the suburbs of the New York city.
Rainbow day!
Historic year for LGBT rights in New York, same sex marriage is legal now. The parade after the declaration was full of joy, pride and colours!
Keys to Aligarh
On a misty wintry Januray evening of 2008, I ventured out of Aligarh Muslim University to see the famous lock and key makers of the country in a drowsy jeep, which took us through the alley ways of the suburbs, vehemently horning through burqa clad crowd shopping through the local festival. I walked through the slushy lanes …
Reflections of a city!
My relation with this city is just complicated, as much as I realise I wont fit any where else in this country! The glass is just a means to see the many aspirations and reflections of the city scape itself.