From the Easel: 3rd Column on artist Ela Shah

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In this edition of “From the Easel”, we conclude a three-part interview with award-winning artist Ela Shah. After emigrating with her family in the early ‘70s, Shah received a master’s degree in Fine Arts from Montclair State University in the mid-’90s. Her return to school after a period where, as she says, “the colors left me” marked a major turning point and she emerged with renewed energy and a dramatically expanded artistic vocabulary.

Sandy Levine: As an older, international student, how did your teachers respond to your Indian motifs and artistic choices?

Ela Shah: “I was different from other students.  I was older, the only student of color and I had totally different values…Each of my teachers had a particular “ism” that they worked in and taught like impressionism, cubism, or abstract expressionism, and they tried to direct me to their point of view. I didn’t fit into any mold, and it was difficult.”

SL: What kept you going?

ES: “I was determined to be authentic and do it my way!  There were things I was struggling with and doing art was cathartic. It was a good escape, a place for me to imagine and dream.  Learning, having time to myself and devoting myself to art was the freedom I needed to deal with my problems and tell my stories.”

SL: Was there any single professor that had the greatest influence on you?

ES: “Yes. His name was Walter Swales. Painting was no longer working for me, and I wanted new ways to express myself. He was a sculptor and he helped me expand my artistic world beyond the boundaries of paint.”

SL: What was it about that experience that rekindled your enthusiasm and nurtured your artistry? 

ES: “Working with my hands and using different materials helped me express what I was feeling. Every time I did something he asked, ‘why do you want to do that?’  He challenged me and encouraged me to do what really mattered to me…. I began creating pieces that were dark and sad…but they helped me cope with my feelings of being dislocated in a new culture. My art helped me to better understand the world and my place in it.”

SL: Can you describe how these new media helped your art evolve?

ES:” I think it had to do with my hands. I used them in new ways, immersing them in warm wax, molding clay, working with bronze, and using new tools that were so different from what I had done before…Working in new media helped bring out feelings that I had hidden in my heart, and I created many works that were thought provoking and meaningful for me.”

SL: Do different media elicit different feelings?

ES: “When I worked in clay, I was thinking that this material is like our bodies and our bodies can perish. When I worked with bronze (see illustration 1) I thought of it as something within our soul that can never be destroyed, a philosophy I learned from Gita.”

SL: I also notice that you began creating pieces that combined different materials and that have evidence of being burnt. What was your motivation?

ES: “Sometimes I would have the urge to burn my work as a way of resurrecting fragments of my past.  Burnt images are symbolic of purification and transformation and remind me of Shiva, the Hindu God who is both creator and destroyer.”

SL: I find your piece “Unborn Sculptures” particularly poignant.  Please tell us about it. 

ES: “I did a series of tiny footprints in clay. Then I burnt them and put gauze around them to heal the wounds… Doing them made me realize how much I missed my daughter who had died as an infant in India.  Working in clay helped me express my sorrow.” (see illustration 2.)

SL: Much of your work clearly reflects your cultural identity.  Does the art world see you as an Indian artist? How do you see yourself?

ES: “Much of the world labels me as an Indian artist, but I see myself as a contemporary female artist. I was speaking once to children, and they asked me ‘why are there no boys in your work? Why are there only women?’  I told them ‘I don’t know what a man feels! My work is about my feelings, and I can only know what a woman feels!’ “

SL:   Are you seeing growing representation of Indian artists in museums and galleries, and a corresponding increase in the value of Indian art in the marketplace? 

ES: “It’s growing…but not fast enough! A lot of museums are showing Indian work, but there is no single museum dedicated to Indian Art. There are a few Indian art galleries…but I don’t think a lot of people in America appreciate contemporary Indian art. I think there should be a dedicated museum, more galleries, and more patrons, too!”

SL: I’m struck by how you’ve never stopped learning; something that’s clearly evidenced by your ability to incorporate so many different media in your work. 

ES:” I love to learn!  I like to challenge myself to learn new techniques and find new mediums to express in my art what’s in my heart. That has always been my way.”

SL: Is there anything that you haven’t done that you want to?

ES: “I’ve read about NFTs and want to learn more about them* and if I have time, I want to do more outdoor work where more people can see.  My dream is to make an open temple where there are no gates…”

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*NFTs are unique cryptographic tokens that exist on a blockchain and cannot be replicated. NFTs can be used to represent real-world items like artwork and real-estate. “Tokenizing” these real-world tangible assets allows them to be bought, sold, and traded more efficiently while reducing the probability of fraud.

—Ela’s book “Ela: Breaking Boundaries” chronicles her personal and artistic journey and includes nearly 100 full-color photos of her unique, award-winning artistry. To learn more about the artist, the award-winning documentary of the same name, read reviews and news articles, visit her website:  www.elashah.com  

Sandy Levine is a freelance writer in the Tri-state area.