Sunil Gupta: Pictures From Here

by Sunil Gupta

Born in New Delhi in 1953, photographer Sunil Gupta grew up in Montreal before studying photography in New York and establishing himself as an artist and curator in London. His story unfolds in this artist's monograph, the first survey of his photography from over twenty-five years of work, drawing on eight major series of pictures and with his own narrative text. This is powerful autobiographical photography, both political and intimate, that addresses being a gay Indian man in Europe torn between cultures, in a form of "exile," and in a personal struggle with the HIV virus. A milestone in art's engagement with race and homosexuality, this book accompanies exhibitions of Gupta's work being shown across North America.

Genres: Photography

128 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2003

About the author

India's best-known working photographer, Gupta is also a well-known artist, curator, and writer.

Reviews

[Julene · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Pictures From Here" by Sunil Gupta is a memoir photography book. First we read an introduction overview of his life. He grew up in India in the 1960s. Then lived in NY, "New York felt like home, as it does for many expatriate Indians being the cultural and crowded mix that it is." His study with Halsman on Central Park West. Then to England for Art school, "England was a shock." He gets his degree in a program that is not satisfactory, but "In retrospect John Hedgecoe did leave me with a lasting legacy, to pursue my interests in a single minded fashion regardless of other people's opinions...." He traveled back and forth between London and Canada. Finally, "India, while it had loomed large in my freelance days, faded in the 1990s as the curating role took me to many other countries."

After this overview, each of the nine sections is a period of his work paired with photographs, so we see the evolution and the political projects he pursued. He was diagnosed with HIV in 1995 and the project From Here to Eternity, "was an interpretation of HIV and its effects on my body, and a map of my local context, South London, as a focal point of attitudes toward HIV survivors and also their treatment."

He has an impressive body of work that is political from a wide point of view. Issues of ethnicity, migration, what it is like to be a gay person, and living with HIV, in a variety of cultures, what is family, social security and how hard that is for some versus others.

[S10_tommccormack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ages: 16 and up

"Pictures From Here" is an excellent book about culture, heritage, art, subjectivity, homosexuality, photography, and much more. The book, which contains the photography and biography of Sunil Gupta, is intensely personal and very insightful. It provides the one-of-a-kind perspective of a gay Indian photographer who has traveled extensively and lived on several continents. The book contains the author's analysis of various events, discussions about his inspirations, and a critique and explanation of his work.

This book, which has a decidedly post-modern feel, would engage any students who are interested in art. Perhaps the best quality of the book is the fact that it makes cutting edge art very accessible to the layperson, which is always a challenge.

Another important characterstic of the book is the fact that it emphasizes the author as a photographer rather than as a gay man or someone of Indian descent (although those facets of his identity are also explored).

This book contains academic-style writing and analyis, so it would be appropriate for older high schoolers. It would be perfect for an advanced art or photography class.

[Jesse Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

there is a series of photographs he made while struggling with HIV that are mind blowing.