birth of swing

2015 - 2016

site specific interactive sculpture

Recipient of the Tim Disney Prize for the Storytelling Arts

The green and scenic landscape of rural Bangladesh as what I noticed when I entered the country by road from Bangaon, India. The land was fertile with fresh crop nd water bodies. Every house grew their own grains and vegetables, and made houses with bamboo and mud. They had their own ponds, ducks and cattle. Life in such serene beauty in today’s age could only be possible in my dre as I am based in the metropolis of Mumba. After arriving at Kushtia and encountering the local sites of my stay, I realized that the effects of globalization and the consumerist lifestyle had polluted even the soils of the remote region in that part of the world—with plastic packages.

As an artist and an educator, I engaged with the local children in a village in Kushtia district. I explained to them how non-degradable material like plastic contaminates and suffocates the soil, and affects the healthy growth of our natural environment. We also shared ideas about different ways to reuse plastic while collecting plastic wrappers, bags, fishing nets, and large sacks from our surrounding. With the collected plastic waste, we made a swing—symbolically understanding the need for ecological balance, and the importance of collective effort—to protect our natural resources combined with fun and play. The work was documented as photos and videos for the purpose of sharing as real life stories beyond the ite-pecifi work.