Women have always been active in the field of art for years now. However, their work has either been written out of history or simply gone unnoticed. But, with the rise in awareness more and more women artists are getting their distinct work recognised.
The panel discussion titled ‘Women in Art’, is being organised by TIFA Working Studios to discuss the significant contributions made by women in the field of filmmaking, writing and art.
“I discovered myself through writing. Through this, I questioned the norms. Our generation was grappling with the transition from the status quo. Today, I see how boldly my students write. Their frankness on sexuality shows their journey to discover their own voice,” explains Anjali Frank Agarwal, professor, media and communication, who will be on the panel.
Women are gaining more visibility in various fields, but the struggle is far from over. Madhuri Maitra, also a part of this panel, is a writer and teacher who has published work in Haiku and micro-poetry.
She speaks of gaining visibility in this field, “Most of the Haiku poets around the thirteenth century were men. There was just one Haiku poetess. Her name is Fukuda Chiyo-ni. Now, there are almost an equal number of women and men in this field. Even in fiction, there seems to be adequate representation of women, from what I gather.”
Some of the renowned women in art, include artists like Amrita Sher-Gil, Frida Kahlo, Yayoi Kusama and filmmakers like Agnes Varda, Jane Campion, Mira Nair and Deepa Mehta.
Sonal Radia Tyagi, the third panellist, has directed over 150 films for CNN’S Inside Africa and Reuters’ Africa Journal while she was based in Uganda and Kenya.
As a filmmaker, film educator and cancer survivor, she firmly believes in ignoring the barriers and focusing on quality work.
“I had it tougher in East Africa as Asian women get stereotyped there. I was competing with white men and had to pretend that there was no barrier. I worked hard, travelled around villages, stayed at refugee camps and delivered a story every week. I eventually set up my own company as well. The real truth is that it’s twice as hard and there are still no where close to enough women in the field of documentary filmmaking.”
As more spaces emerge, hopefully we shall see diversity in stories, paintings and artwork with an equal number of women heralding projects as filmmakers, writers and artists.
‘Women in Art’ panel will be held on November 30 at TIFA Working Studios.
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