sowing seeds 2011 gelawas, rajasthan

1. REVIEW
WORKSHOP
HARALD
SCHOLE
(NL)
organized
by
the
Kaman
Art
Foundation
SOWING
SEEDS
2011
INTERNATIONAL
VILLAGE
RESIDENCY
GELAWAS,
INDIA
Concept
of
Harald
Schole
:
a
tribute
to
water
^ 18the century step well in Jodhpur ^ interior memorial Jaswant Thada, Jodhpur
old water well and fish pound, Gelawas new water reservoir, during the dry season, Gelawas
His
work
statement
Positive
and
negative
are
opposites,
and
also
complementary.
With
Tribute,
Harald
Schole
wants
to
show
us
the
balance
between
the
contrasts.
Besides
that,
he
combines
his
Western
or
global
concepts
with
the
local
possibilities.
Every
year,
Rajasthan
faces
the
problem
of
a
deficiency
of
water
and,
sometimes
even
the
lack
of
clean
water.
In
the
dry
season,
for
months
no
rain
is
falling
and
rivers
run
dry.

2. In
the
Netherlands,
in
contrary,
there
is
plenty
of
water.
For
a
country
that
produces
so
many
vegetables,
fresh
and
clean
water
is
of
great
importance.
But
there
is
something
else.
The
Netherlands
is
situated
bellow
sea-­‐level.
The
Dutch
therefore
need
to
be
well
protected
against
a
too
high
sea
level
and
flooded
rivers.
So,
water
possesses
a
good
and
an
evil
side.
These
opposite
characteristics
of
water
are
represented
in
this
temporary
installation.
The
Indian
river
of
Ganges
is
a
holy
river.
Schole
has
chosen
to
visualise
this
river.
The
curves
of
the
river
of
Ganges
are
drawn
on
the
temple
floor
both
in
actual
and
mirrored
shape,
from
the
source
of
the
river
in
the
Himalayas
till
the
estuary
in
Bangladesh.
Beautifully
coloured
lines
of
fabric
are
connecting
these
two
images
of
the
Ganges.
There
are
eight
lines,
representing
the
eight
times
you
can
or
maybe
have
to
decide
between
good
and
bad.
The
figure
‘8’
symbolises
infinity,
comparable
with
the
water
of
the
river,
also
a
continuous
flow,
from
the
mountains
to
the
sea
to
her
source
in
the
mountains.
Like
a
continue
cycle
of
life.
Tribute
is
put
together
with
locally
available,
recycled
materials.
With
a
few
kids,
he
was
collecting
fabrics
lying
around
the
houses,
when
the
artist
was
invited
in
one
of
the
houses.
In
exchange
for
some
pictures
and
stories
about
his
country,
the
villagers
gave
him
a
bag
full
of
colourful
leftovers
of
cloth
for
his
artwork.
For
some
days,
Harald
Schole
was
working
intensively.
And
from
these
small
pieces
of
cloth,
he
made
over
twenty
meters
of
colourful,
decorated
ribbons.
Knotting
the
pieces
of
fabric
was
a
very
meditative
activity
and
his
personal
tribute.
Schole
could
not
directly
find
a
proper
location
for
the
work.
One
morning,
he
made
a
walk
through
the
village
and
visited
the
temple
near
the
village
square.
By
coincidence,
he
met
the
priest
of
the
temple
and
they
had
a
small
chat.
He
explained
his
proposal
for
the
Sowing
Seeds
project.
And
then,
the
priest
offered
him
to
do
the
temporary
installation
in
the
temple.
He
choses
the
place
were
water
is
collected
in
a
subterranean
reservoir.
Schole
felt
honoured
and
happy
as
the
art
piece
had
found
its
beautiful
site-­‐
specific
location
in
a
natural
way.

3.
^ detail work in process

4.
Experience:
The
residency
in
Gelawas
can
be
characterised
as
short,
intensive
and
filled
with
hospitality.
The
organisation
and
the
villagers
were
very
open
and
collaborative.
He
learned
much
about
the
culture
of
Rajasthan,
but
maybe
the
(young)
villagers
were
even
able
to
learn
more
then
the
participants
of
the
residency.
He
would
have
liked
to
have
more
time
to
better
learn
to
know
the
craftsmen
in
the
village.
The
craftsmen
were
usually
very
busy.
For
the
children,
it
was
holiday
period.
They
had
time
enough.
The
numbers
of
ceramic
horses
and
their
size
the
potter
is
producing
each
year
impressed
him.
In
his
spare
time
the
potter
is
also
a
dancer
and
a
wonderful
performer
with
a
fast
turning
wheel
on
his
shoulder.
To
discover
the
culture
of
the
village
and
the
habits
of
the
villagers,
he
would
have
preferred
to
have
more
time.
Schole
was
glad,
he
had
been
in
Rajasthan
a
year
before,
which
gave
him
in
some
way
a
familiar
feeling.
Before
going
to
Gelawas
he
had
decided
not
to
bring
any
materials
from
The
Netherlands
to
the
village.
He
did
not
want
to
import
art
materials
from
The
West
to
India.
The
constraint
of
material
was
my
well-­‐considered
way
to
take
his
time
and
explore
the
village
and
the
culture
of
Rajasthan
which
finally
resulted
in
an
art
piece
of
which
he
would
never
have
thought
to
use
so
much
colour
and
fabric
in
it.

5.
^ drinking-bowl for peacocks, Gelawas well courtyard temple, Gelawas

6.
He
realised
that
a
tool
for
exchange
of
experiences
and
visualisation
of
the
collaboration
with
the
villagers
more
directly
could
be
valuable.
It
could
give
something
in
return
to
the
villagers.
One
could
think
of
a
musical
instrument,
but
for
him
as
visual
artist,
he
was
thinking
of
a
small
instant
photo
studio.
Maybe
with
crazy,
fantastic
backgrounds
with
a
mixture
of
Indian
gods
and
goddesses
and
also
with
the
landscape
of
a
land
that
is
situated
far
below
sea-­‐level.
installation Tribute in temple courtyard, Gelawas drawing by Gabriella Hirst
Harald
Schole’s
conclusion:
I
really
felt
at
home
in
my
canopy
and
I
know
that
Gelawas
will
be
another
home
forever.
Amsterdam
2012