Chitra Gopalakrishnan

Of the Mother

Digital collage — 11x14", 300 dpi, CMYK.

For this piece I am seeking to build a metaphorical landscape of objects, both that signify ornamentation and injury. This work is a critique on the impulse to decorate and deify women’s bodies while also regulating what a woman’s body can do. This duality is also explored in soft and aggressive forms and a casual and un-serious symmetry that seeks to mimic traditional scrolls and textiles.

Bio

Chitra Gopalakrishnan is a graphic designer and multimedia artist that seeks to represent lived realities of overlooked communities/races/genders through her work. She has great affinity for the overlap of new media and traditional art forms to tell stories in the work. She is the co-founder of a 15 year-old handloom revival project in India called Kara Weaves which exists at the intersection of design, craft and ethical trade. She has dual MFAs in Graphic Design from the Cranbrook Academy of Art, USA and the ESAG Penninghen, France. She is currently a Graphic and UI/UX design faculty at the San Diego State University alongside an active studio and design practice. More at https://chitraaa.com and @chitragopala on Instagram.