A migrant's tale

After I moved to India for an MFA degree at the Faculty of Fine Arts in Baroda I didnt return to England Living in India meant that I had to avail of a PIO card Persons of Indian Origin In order to do that I had to prove that I had traces of being Indian recalls 47yearold artist Desmond Lazaro when we meet him at Chemould Prescott Road FortGenerations of Desmond Lazaros family migrated from Burma to Leeds between the 1950s and 60s on The S S Salween in pic which took the SuezMediterranean route PicBipin KokateEach story that he shares feels like a fascinating journey that combines personal and world history The artist was born in Leeds England in a family whose history stretches across continents His parents migrated from Burma to Leeds in 1957 and his greatgrandfather lived in Madras now Chennai during the 1800sBirth of an ideaA long and arduous search for this legacy led him on a mission during which he found baptism certificates of his greatgrandparents from church records in a tiny cupboard at the St Marys Catholic Church at Armenian Street ChennaiThe Incoming Passengers list Lazaro reproduces the list of passengers travelling on The SS SalweenI wanted to paint a portrait of my grandfather I thought how could I picture someone I dont know and havent seen I wanted to know who the man was Thats where it all started he recallsWhat began as a quest to unravel the family tree and the need to acquire a PIO certificate led to the bigger idea of gauging the impact of immigration onhis family All this has come together in a new exhibition The Incoming Passengers that opens at the gallery this weekFractured Family TreeIt also showcases a tenminute film where Lazaros mother Joyce Theresa DCruz talks about her experience of moving from her home in a small village located outside Rangoon to a brick house in LondonThe show will include painted replicas of various documents including baptism certificates as well as family documentaries that his father had filmed over the years The miniature exhibits have been made using raised gesso a white paint mixture and natural pigment paint onhandmade paper sourced from Sanganer in RajasthanQ How did you research for this showA My greatgrandfather was a watchmaker who lived in Madras during the 1800s Thats where I found his baptism dates The connection of finding roots that connect you to a place and its people was overwhelming I found the baptism certificate interesting and rendered it in a gesso script much like the original stained printed scratch marked books that some unknown clerk would have written years ago I began to look for photographs but the first photography records werent available for before 1850 Indias first photography group Madras Photographers was set up in Madras in the 1860s They mainly documented monuments in South India which eventually became the Archeological Survey of India Most records included documentation of Hindu temples and festivals with little information about the common man I looked at how the East India Company was set up and why Madras and Calcutta were their big centres I studied migration in that context Many from India and Rangoon had moved to England then I looked at how I had moved back to Pondicherry not knowing much of my family history then I moved because my wife is French Immigration changes and impacts life hugely and that interested me When I was speaking to my mom she mentioned about how they and my grandparents migrated from Burma to Leeds in the 1950s and 60s on the SS Salween that took the SuezMediterranean route She lived in a village where they would visit Rangoon once a month From there to a brick house in London was an incredible move I would always wonder what it must have been like I asked her if I could record her recollections That conversation is now a tenminute film that forms a part of the exhibitionA miniature painting that imitates the polaroid style cine film shot by Desmond Lazaros father showing Desmond with his mother and sister on a visit to the Victoria Memorial in LondonQ How were you able to source footage of your familyA My father presented me with a bunch of cine films He had shot these family memories on his 8mm home movies camera Like all celluloid these photos are slightly tarnished out of focus double exposed but became the source for documenting and revisiting my family settled in England It showcased how negotiating the imaginary homeland on a daily basis would have been the reality for many families of the Commonwealth that migrated westward I captured these in small Polaroidformat paintings Some are simple images from daily life ndash like a bunch of plastic roses that my mom kept on the table in a golden jar She cleaned it everyday It made me think of how immigrants couldnt afford fresh flowers everyday There are also images of our visit to Buckingham Palace customary for immigrants We had a piano My dad was a carpenter and plummer He turned it into a bench for us Immigrants couldnt afford to learn the piano so we would make the best of what we had My father took some outoffocus pictures the compositions were not great But the memories are worth itThe Cosmic Egg is an oval image that resembles a big thumbprint and is based on the spiral a technique in which we train to create fine spirals with controlled brush movementsQ Tell us about the techniqueA The script on the documents is a technique that I learnt since it fascinated me Somehow I wanted to show how we look at sacred script in modern day For the Cosmic Egg I created 1 cm x 1cm spirals repeatedly its part of a meditative process It also represents the concept of the golden womb Sanskrit Hiranyagarbha that led to the creation of the universe The other exhibits are made using raised gesso a white paint mixture and natural pigment paint on handmade paper from Sanganer RajasthanLazaro with an artwork that uses embroidery PicBipin KokateQ Youre passionate about Pichhwai and miniature art and have used elements of both in this exhibition Are your works traditional or contemporaryA I learnt miniature painting and Pichhwai in Jaipur from a master for 12 years and it forms a part of my art background They also influence all the contemporary work I do When you learn a craft it becomes your bread and butter your skin and bones Everything you do has references even if you want to leave it behind The images that I have created from the cine films are also in the Polaroid form with miniatures I love isolating the image with PolaroidFrom March 10 to April 16At Chemould Prescott Road Queens Mansion FortCall 22000211 Log on to facebookcomChemouldPrescottRoad