Moksha Khanna
GradEx 107: Madhuban; मधुबन (Sweet; Madhu/ Forest; Ban) (May 11th - 15th at OCAD U)
2022
Relief, Wood-blocks, Fabric, Oil-based Ink and Natural Turmeric Dye
5ftw 4 ftH, 6 yards of fabric
304.09:00:00 [hh:mm:ss]
Madhuban embraces the concept of cultural identity, integration, and displacement; being a Rajasthani Printmaker living in Tkaronto. In Hindi Madhuban, translates to Sweet(Madhu) Forest(ban).
“Madhuban explores the interrelation that humans have with native species and how identity can be represented through plants, using traditional native-folk painting styles like Mithai and Rajasthani block printing that connect my cultural identity. I have created motifs of native plants using the Rajasthani block printing style. I have expressed stories that I grew up with and explored new stories that I have learned during my time in Toronto/ Tkaronto. I connect to plants as my grandparents were herbalists and I learnt a lot about native species from a very young age so moving to Canada I was very interested in learning about the native plant species in Ontario. The questions that helped me develop Madhuban started from thinking about native plant species as well as cultural diaspora. My grandmother used to say ‘Plants have all the elements like us, so I think they help us to remember our nature. They hold the sun, water, fire, and the earth and so do we’. I created work that involves finding a way to amplify the experiences of Indians growing up in different countries. For my block pieces I have made motifs of Black Maple (Acer nigrum) and Neem tree (Azadirachta indica).”
Work by
Moksha Khanna
Printmaking
“Moksha Khanna (she/her) is an Indian, emerging arts administrator + multidisciplinary artist based in Tkaronto/ Toronto. Her practice is deliberately interdisciplinary in both form and content,...” [More]