Fashioning identity and resistance: Shilpa Chavan's HUM (we/us)

D'Souza, Robert E. (2024) Fashioning identity and resistance: Shilpa Chavan's HUM (we/us). Journal of Visual Arts Practice, 23 (3), 213-243. (doi:10.1080/14702029.2024.2394751).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Shilpa Chavan's short film HUM (we/us) blends fashion design, filmmaking, and social critique into a powerful artistic statement. This essay examines Chavan's innovative approach, exploring how she has collaborated to craft a visual and sonic narrative about identity, resistance, and community through a lens of postcolonial India. The analysis employs multiple theoretical frameworks, including gender theory, critical fashion practices, postcolonial studies, psychoanalysis, and sound analysis. Chavan's use of recycled materials and hybrid aesthetics creates a critical space for reimagining fashion's activist role in society, challenging dominant norms while envisioning new possibilities. The essay situates HUM (we/us) within the context of contemporary Indian and international art, drawing comparisons with works by artists such as Tejal Shah, Pushpamala N., Isaac Julien, and Zanele Muholi. It also examines the film's social and cultural impact, its critical reception, and its potential influence on future artistic practices. Through detailed analysis, HUM (we/us) emerges as a compelling example of interdisciplinary art practice sparking meaningful dialogue about complex social issues, demonstrating the power of art to challenge hegemonic narratives and imagine alternative futures.

Text

Fashioning identity and resistance Shilpa Chavan s HUM we us - Version of Record

Available under License Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives.

Download (6MB)

More information

e-pub ahead of print date: 11 September 2024

Published date: 2024

Additional Information: Robert E. D’Souza is Professor of Critical Practice at Winchester School of Art and Director of the Social Practices Lab at the University of Southampton (UK). He is co-editor of Journal of Visual Art Practice and his books include India’s Biennale Effect (2016), Barcelona Masala: Narratives and Interactions in Cultural Space (2013) and Outside India: Dialogues and Documents of Art and Social Change (2012). His work has been exhibited widely including Bergen Kunstall 3,14 and osloBIENNALEN in Norway (2019), India Habitat Centre in India (2019), Tate Exchange at Tate Modern in the UK (2018) and Kochi-Muziris Biennale in India (2014)

Keywords: Critical art practices, cultural hybridity, fashion film, gender performativity, postcolonial aesthetics