<p>For Kolkata-based artist and zine maker Eeshani Mitra, her latest collection, Synthetic Flower Dreams is all about blooms that speak of a “state of longing until the final moments before their eventual decay.”</p>.<p>“When I initially started shooting this series, I kept seeing how this mixture of various liquids and flowers would start morphing into completely different-looking mixes in a matter of a couple of hours. Add to that any changes caused by external sources of light, be it the sun or my flashlight — I ended up discovering compositions and focusing on elements that I had not noticed initially. So, I would often shoot in the same mixture for days, trying to record these amazing patterns and textures,” shares Eeshani.</p>.<p>The colours burst forth in light pinks, deepen into shades of orange, dipping into blues, but bringing in the fluidity of forms in the petals, whorls and swirls. In Pink Harvest, the fluid lines move up to form a heart. Brilliant, fresh, blushing and beautiful. “The heart only stayed that way in the mixture for a few moments, I was very happy to have been able to capture it well. I remember having vivid dreams where I was submerged in a pink-coloured sea filled with the last remaining bits of nature from this world. Yet, none of them were dead, but rather they kept growing and blooming. This vivid visual inspired me to start shooting the images that went on to become a part of the triptych series of images from Pink Harvest,” she shares.</p>.<p>Is it an organic growth for her ruminations — stemming from nature, experiences, feelings…? “A little bit of both,” she responds. “I have always been interested in flowers, be it preserving for my personal journal or keeping a record of flowers that I discovered growing in the strangest of places. In that way, it has been something that I have always thought about and been interested in as a subject.”</p>.<p>Then there are the scattered swirls in Negative Visions — a stunning rendition in watery blues melting into peach-pink. “These have been very challenging times indeed. It has been quite tough to stay motivated and do anything for a while. I wanted ‘Negative Visions’ to resemble the bird’s eye view of a beach with waves crashing into it. I tried various liquid mixes in trying to get the composition closest to the image I had in my head. Somehow wanting to escape somewhere far away from reality. This particular image was very similar to the visions I would have from time to time whenever I would get dazed and start daydreaming,” says Eeshani wistfully.</p>.<p class="CrossHead"> A haunting blend</p>.<p>There is a haunting blend of blues in Synthetic Springs. A synthetic blend with the natural sometimes creates an object of beauty. But it is skin deep. Does she agree? “Absolutely. This blend of synthetic and natural elements is not meant to last. My initial goal was always to find these small moments of synergy, where both these elements would work with each other to create something beautiful together,” confesses Eeshani. Her favourite creation is A Feast for Flies.</p>.<p>“I love how flat it looks — almost like a scan. I think I’m fond of this image mostly because of the amount of work that went into being able to get it right. It was really hard to capture the flies properly without disturbing the peace around them in the medium so I couldn’t move much and had to be very still in order to get the image I wanted,” she shares.</p>.<p>What has been her biggest learning from this collection? “To be patient! It has really taught me how to expand on smaller ideas and integrate them as part of a whole. Next is an experiment with different mediums. I have been working on a few rough drafts for a couple of videos, and a few physical installations that expand on the idea of Synthetic Flower Dreams,” she says.</p>
<p>For Kolkata-based artist and zine maker Eeshani Mitra, her latest collection, Synthetic Flower Dreams is all about blooms that speak of a “state of longing until the final moments before their eventual decay.”</p>.<p>“When I initially started shooting this series, I kept seeing how this mixture of various liquids and flowers would start morphing into completely different-looking mixes in a matter of a couple of hours. Add to that any changes caused by external sources of light, be it the sun or my flashlight — I ended up discovering compositions and focusing on elements that I had not noticed initially. So, I would often shoot in the same mixture for days, trying to record these amazing patterns and textures,” shares Eeshani.</p>.<p>The colours burst forth in light pinks, deepen into shades of orange, dipping into blues, but bringing in the fluidity of forms in the petals, whorls and swirls. In Pink Harvest, the fluid lines move up to form a heart. Brilliant, fresh, blushing and beautiful. “The heart only stayed that way in the mixture for a few moments, I was very happy to have been able to capture it well. I remember having vivid dreams where I was submerged in a pink-coloured sea filled with the last remaining bits of nature from this world. Yet, none of them were dead, but rather they kept growing and blooming. This vivid visual inspired me to start shooting the images that went on to become a part of the triptych series of images from Pink Harvest,” she shares.</p>.<p>Is it an organic growth for her ruminations — stemming from nature, experiences, feelings…? “A little bit of both,” she responds. “I have always been interested in flowers, be it preserving for my personal journal or keeping a record of flowers that I discovered growing in the strangest of places. In that way, it has been something that I have always thought about and been interested in as a subject.”</p>.<p>Then there are the scattered swirls in Negative Visions — a stunning rendition in watery blues melting into peach-pink. “These have been very challenging times indeed. It has been quite tough to stay motivated and do anything for a while. I wanted ‘Negative Visions’ to resemble the bird’s eye view of a beach with waves crashing into it. I tried various liquid mixes in trying to get the composition closest to the image I had in my head. Somehow wanting to escape somewhere far away from reality. This particular image was very similar to the visions I would have from time to time whenever I would get dazed and start daydreaming,” says Eeshani wistfully.</p>.<p class="CrossHead"> A haunting blend</p>.<p>There is a haunting blend of blues in Synthetic Springs. A synthetic blend with the natural sometimes creates an object of beauty. But it is skin deep. Does she agree? “Absolutely. This blend of synthetic and natural elements is not meant to last. My initial goal was always to find these small moments of synergy, where both these elements would work with each other to create something beautiful together,” confesses Eeshani. Her favourite creation is A Feast for Flies.</p>.<p>“I love how flat it looks — almost like a scan. I think I’m fond of this image mostly because of the amount of work that went into being able to get it right. It was really hard to capture the flies properly without disturbing the peace around them in the medium so I couldn’t move much and had to be very still in order to get the image I wanted,” she shares.</p>.<p>What has been her biggest learning from this collection? “To be patient! It has really taught me how to expand on smaller ideas and integrate them as part of a whole. Next is an experiment with different mediums. I have been working on a few rough drafts for a couple of videos, and a few physical installations that expand on the idea of Synthetic Flower Dreams,” she says.</p>
