Drawing parallels to the painter’s palette, video performance ‘Name on rice’ relates to the haptic and visual experience of eating South Indian meals. However, the items of food function as simulacra, i.e. they are not actually food, but are composed of pigments. Presented in and consumed in the seemingly ‘right’ order, Sellamuthu alludes to cultural codes and conventions inherent in the assimilation of food. Within the apparent multiplicity of dishes and possible permutations, Sellamuthu speculates the scope for individual agency and choice in our consumption of tradition.
Vasundhara Shankari Sellamuthu, Name on rice, HD video, 2019
Drawing parallels to the painter’s palette, video performance ‘Name on rice’ relates to the haptic and visual experience of eating South Indian meals. However, the items of food function as simulacra, i.e., they are not actually food but are composed of pigments. Presented in and consumed in the seemingly ‘right’ order, I allude to cultural codes and conventions inherent in the assimilation of food. Within the apparent multiplicity of dishes and possible permutations, I speculate the scope for individual agency and choice in our consumption of tradition.