Krishnaraj Chonat
Turquoise steel, fiberglass, fake fur and epoxy paint 117 x 132 x 188 cm 2013
Krishnaraj Chonat is a sculptor, installation and performance artist from Bangalore, a city that in the last decade has become synonymous with information technology in India. Notions of technology as progress, questionable methods of disposing hazardous waste, and the destruction of the environment through aggressive new development are some of the recurring issues he responds to. Through the juxtaposition of unconventional sculptural materials such as sandalwood soap and e-waste, Chonat offers cautionary, poetic and humorous insights on critical issues in contemporary Indian that are relavent throughout the world.
Through the use of unconventional and contrasting sculptural materials such as Mysore Sandalwood soap and e-waste, Krishnaraj Chonat layers memories of a more innocent past with “the other side of the story” – poor laborers dismantling hazardous waste. He continually questions notions of “progress” through technology and simulated versus real experiences in tourism and everyday life.
Chonat received his Post-Diploma in sculpture from the M.S. University of Baroda and a BFA from Karnataka Chitra Kala Parishad in Bangalore. He has been included in numerous national and international exhibitions including, “Homespun” at the Devi Art Foundation in New Delhi (2011), “Paris-Delhi-Bombay” at the Centre Pompidou in Paris (2011), National Museum of Contemporary Art in Seoul (2009), Mori Art Museum in Tokyo (2009), “Chalo India” at the Sammlung Essl Museum in Vienna, National Museum of Contemporary Art in Seoul, Mori Art Museum in Tokyo (2008-09), “Where in the world?” at the Devi Art Foundation in New Delhi (2008), “48 Degree Celsius” at Public Art Ecology in New Delhi (2008), “Passage to India, Initial Access, Frank Cohen Collection” in Wolverhampton, Manchester, UK (2008), “New Installations from India” at The Mattress Factory in Pittsburgh (2007)