JAYANTHIMOORTHY

Jayanthi Moorthy’s practice is inter-disciplinary, encompassing works on canvas, digital prints, video and, installations. The underlying theme in her work is a dialogue with the self and her surroundings regarding social and cultural struggles and concerns as one navigates the world. She derives inspiration from cultural practices of India, Asian philosophies and, personal experiences of living in India and the US. Asian philosophies of centrality, impermanence and rituality guide Ms. Moorthy's work when she draws on the floor with ephemeral materials like rice flour, sand and spices. “As I draw, I move and bend my body in various yoga poses thus following an age-old Hindu practice that is simultaneously a form of meditation, a test of physical endurance, mental clarity and an aesthetic tribute to divinity”. These drawings are wiped away and redrawn, like a repetitive ritualistic practice. They are recorded and presented as digital prints and sometimes become part of site-specific installations where they are combined with digital video projections and audience participation. These installations become meditative spaces that invite people to open and empty their minds through a process of self-awareness. Ms. Moorthy's mixed media paintings on canvas and linen acquire the tactile quality of thick woven threads as blobs of paint are squeezed in various linear forms. These works range in sizes from 4' to 12' and are mostly un stretched and hanging like a scroll with a message.