An interview with Apnavi Thacker
April 2006

How did your interest in street art first express itself?
My interest in street art surfaced when I was 14 years old. I got together with some friends and we started “bombing”- the street jargon for signing an alias you create for yourself- the streets of Geneva. This was of course complete vandalism, however, for us it was a great way to relieve teenage angst. In time, we realised that there is a deeper meaning to street art which surpasses the “coolness” of acclaiming notoriety in your city. Street art enabled me to realise the extent of “control” that the system has on all of us. It made me aware of a massive labyrinth of inconsistencies and lies that we are being fed all the time no matter where we live. Street art is a subversive yet non-violent upheaval against the system and its controlling factors. It could translate as “we know what you are doing and we will not succumb to your mind control”.

Can you talk a little about the immediacy of the process associated with your present body of work as opposed to more traditional painting techniques?
Street art is mostly always about right here right now unless you’re painting on a legal wall or a safe environment. I maintained the immediacy with my present body of work even though I was working in my studio. Some of the works come across as raw or unfinished. This is due to the limited time that you have to put up your work in the streets. However, I felt restricted with the car paint spray cans I had to use. The graffiti specific cans come in a multitude of colours that you find in Europe and are not available here, hence, I substituted these with acrylic paint or markers. It was also my first attempt at using stencils and making these proved to be quite challenging.
The biggest challenge was to reduce the works in order to fit them onto canvas. Composition comes into play when you work on canvas as opposed to the freedom that a wall offers.

Has it been difficult for you to translate ideas associated with street art into a gallery context?
On the contrary, taking street art from the streets and into a gallery allows you to reach out to a far broader audience and explain the thought process behind this form of expression. Most people find street art to be offensive and they completely block off the ideas that the artist is expressing. Many street artists such as SWOON, a New York based street artist who still puts up works on the streets, have taken their work into the context of a gallery. The conventional and “mannered” aspect of having a show in a gallery makes people pay real attention to what you have to say.

It gives you much more credibility, since to “fight the system” you have to start by working your way into it and transforming “vandalism” into activism. I think that showing in a gallery may also help your cause in the streets since the motifs you use suddenly pop up on a street billboard or a bus stop and people recognise them and to some small extent legitimise you and accept you as an artist because you regularly show in galleries as well. It’s human nature to dismiss something that one cannot grasp unless one is formally introduced to it.

What are the specific differences between approaching street art in India as opposed to a European or American context?
The major difference is that in most parts of Europe, street art is either completely illegal or “tolerated’ in certain areas. You know exactly what you are getting into and what the repercussions are if you get caught. In Europe you can wrangle your way out of major trouble most of the time in the event of an arrest. You generally have to put in an X amount of community service and pay a fine and maybe spend a few hours or a night in jail. America is most likely the most dangerous place to be a street artist since the authorities are extremely vigilant. For example, in the state of New York you have to be 21 to be able to buy a marker or a spray can and walking the streets with either of these could get you arrested. That said, you are completely aware of the consequences of your act. In India, the laws regarding street art are completely undefined so you have no idea of what the repercussions might be. This is certainly due to the fact that there is an absence of street art here. I find this surprising to say the least since the occurrence of street art exists in almost every city, worldwide, from Rio de Janeiro to Tokyo. In India, you’d run the risk of physical harm inflicted by the authorities in question. Besides that, the streets of Europe feel somewhat safer than Indian streets. Being a girl, I would certainly feel more prone to acts of physical violence being inflicted upon me if i were to take to the streets of Bombay. India also has the “watchman syndrome” which adds a handicap to putting up your work on the streets. On the other hand, India has many, many white walls that are untouched, maybe we should invite BANKSY to town...

Which street artists have inspired your work? Your use of stencils seems to reference the work of Banksy in particular. Would you say there is a space in Indian art for the kind of interventions that he has successfully pulled off in London, New York and even, recently, the West Bank?
There are so many artists who inspire me more so for their dedication to their cause.
SHEPARD FAIREY aka OBEY, URBANMEDIUM and BANKSY of course. The use of stencils is very common with street artists as it is one of the quickest ways to put up your work and BANKSY, an accomplished artist (whose real identity remains, as far as i know, completely unknown) creates amazing work with his stencils. His work is loaded with irony and proves to be controversial almost every time; his subject matters are never trivial and every piece of his makes a powerful statement. In my opinion, his best work is executed in the West Bank.

I truly believe that there is an urgent need for Indian artists to create a platform of expression which transcends the norms of what is considered art in India. By and large, I feel that as artists we also have a duty to be the “voice” that questions the system and its inequalities. India is making it’s mark globally and we are on the verge of becoming a very powerful country yet we have so many skeletons in our closet that we refuse to address. I sincerely think it is time to intervene.

Do you feel any affinity to the current generation of contemporary Indian artists?
Sadly enough, I cannot identify to most of them, although some of them are truly brilliant and I admire their work. This maybe due to the fact that while growing up in Switzerland I was encouraged to express my most outrageous thoughts and ideas and since my move to Bombay I feel more or less constrained in my work. Rarely do I see artists here make bold statements and the ones who do, are forced to either tone down their work or keep it to themselves. The imposed judgement on what is considered “kosher” art in India is far too harsh and the kind of “mind control” and censorship Indian artists are subjected to eventually moulds us into painting pretty pictures.

What is your response to the notion that an Indian contemporary artist is burdened by the expectation of putting something of her Indianness into her artwork?
I find that expectation to be altogether senseless. Naturally, we are often influenced by our surroundings and our upbringing and culture comes into play as well; nevertheless it remains the artist’s choice whether to include his/her “Indianness” into her work or not. My present body of work depicts no apparent “Indianness”, yet truth be known, I am inspired by the dysfunctions of day to day life in Bombay.