Summary:
Identity’, has her using soil and ash to explore the symbolic significance of man on earth in the forms of landscape and figuration. The first has 12 units, each comprises 30 sheets of Indian handmade paper, deckle-edged and pasted together in an acid free medium. “The 29 sheets are chronologically painted with an edge each comprising earth from one state of India. “They are a labour of love and a culmination of my understanding of clay/earth as a meaningful material,” adds the 62-year-old. Given the scale of her work, Patel had to incorporate help from other artists as well, especially those living in the North East, who helped locate earth from fields and sent it to her..