about — आशुतोष शक्तान

आशुतोष शक्तान

Nobody knows how come the hum, hum..
Sub-Rosa (Under the Rose)
A River runs through it
Ministry of truth
Darkside of moon for which the moonflower longs
कुंडली (Horoscope)

Information

Ashutosh shaktan (b.1989 shimla, India) is a research-based artist working with photography, who specializes in long-term projects that critically engage with the ideological aspects of documentary photography. His practice operates at the intersection of documentary photography and constructed imagery, exploring themes such as truth, authenticity, decolonization, as well as investigating the contextual language and possibilities of photography. Ashutosh is the SPIN-MPF (Martin Parr Foundation) Fellow for 2024.
In addition to his artistic practice and tutoring, he actively participates in cultivating apples with his father at their residence nestled in the foothills of the West Himalayas, India. He is currently based in Bristol and has just finished his MA photography from UWE Bristol.

आशुतोष शक्तान (जन्म 1989 शिमला, भारत) फोटोग्राफी के क्षेत्र में काम करने वाले एक शोध-आधारित कलाकार हैं, जो उन दीर्घकालिक परियोजनाओं में विशेषज्ञता रखते हैं जो वृत्तचित्र फोटोग्राफी के वैचारिक पहलुओं के साथ आलोचनात्मक रूप से जुडी हुई है। उनका अभ्यास दस्तावेज़ी फोटोग्राफी और निर्मित इमेजरी के चौराहे पर संचालित होता है, सत्य, प्रामाणिकता, डिकोलोनाइजेशन जैसे विषयों की खोज के साथ-साथ प्रासंगिक भाषा और फोटोग्राफी की संभावनाओं की जांच करता है। आशुतोष 2024 के लिए SPIN-MPF (मार्टिन पार्र फाउंडेशन) फेलो के रूप में चयनित हुए हैं।
अपने कलात्मक अभ्यास के अलावा, वह अपने पिता के साथ भारत के पश्चिमी हिमालय की तलहटी में स्थित अपने पैतृक निवास पर सेब की खेती में सक्रिय रूप से भाग लेते हैं।
वह वर्तमान में ब्रिस्टल में निवास कर रहे हैं और हाल ही में उन्होंने यूडब्ल्यूई ब्रिस्टल से एमए फोटोग्राफी की डिग्री पूरी की है।

2013 - Bought his first camera from the money which was meant to buy a Computer to pursue his Masters in labour studies
2014 - Stumbled upon Sohrab hura’s ‘Life is elsewhere’ and Raghubir singh’s ‘Ganges’.
2014 - Travelled first time across the country with a camera, was chased by elephants and survived a flood.
2015 - Fellowship for photography, India habitat centre.
2016 - Opened a small library in the village of Bandapani, where he made his first Long term photography project.
2016 - Exhibition at the visual arts gallery, India habitat centre.
2017-2018 - worked on various small projects and assignments.
2018 - International class in documentary photography and photojournalism, Hannover, Germany.
2018 - Angkor photo workshops with Sohrab hura and Antoine d’agata.
2019 - Conducted a 7-day photography workshop in his hometown, first of its kind in Shimla.
2020 - Riga photomonth group exhibition.
2020 - Shergill Sundaram arts foundation grant (Special mention).
2021 - Criticae masterclass with Max pinckers.
2021 - Teaching position at Chitkara University.
2022 - Alkazi foundation theatre photography grant (Special mention)
2022 - First pages, Group exhibition, Rautenstrauch joest museum, Cologne.
2023 - Group exhibition, Centre space gallery, Bristol.
2023 - Afghan box camera workshops at Arnolfini and UWE Bristol.
2024- Selected as an artist to Exhibit at Fotofestival Lenzburg, Switzerland.
2024- Selected as an artist to Exhibit at Biennale Photo Mulhouse 2024, France.
2024 - MA photography UWE bristol.
2024 - SPIN (Secrecy, Power and ignorance research network) - MPF (Martin Parr foundation) commision for 2024.
2024 - ‘A place in change’ a group exhibition at the Centrespace Gallery bristol.
2024- Selected artist for BOPFOLIO 24 as a part of the Books on Photography festival in Bristol.
2024- Exhibited at the Phoenix Art Space as a part of Photo Fringe Festival Brighton.
2024- Won the famous BOP Photo PUB quiz during the Books on photography BOP festival.