MAYA MIMA

Maya Mima is a student of the Department of History of Art, at Kala Bhavana, Visva-Bharati University in Santiniketan. Her artistic practices have been shaped by her mixed cultural background, Indian from her father’s side and Japanese from her mother’s. Although having grown up in India most of her life, she has felt a sense of being torn between two cultures. That is why many of her artworks are about family and coming to terms with the idea of identity in such a context. In her works she delves into memories and snippets of anecdotes, brought out by patches of cloth and stitching. These are not brightly coloured new cloth, but worn with use. These various wear and tears in used clothes are a proof of someone having lived in them, while creating memories of all kinds. Putting something like that into her art is a way of tapping into those memories, of her own or whoever might have worn it. Patchwork is also something she does often because it gives her the sense of piecing together the emotions and thoughts within herself which felt fragmented and disparate. She feels that most people are made up of various parts, and she is trying through her works to come to terms with the various fragments within herself. She does not think the pieces are identical in everyone but perhaps they will be relatable in some way.

Medium: Embroidery and Acrylic on Cloth

Email: watashimaya@gmail.com