1986

Raqs Media Collective founded in 1992 consists of Delhi-based multidisciplinary artists Suddhabrata Sengupta (B. 1968), Monica Nerula (B. 1969) and Jeebesh Bagchi (B. 1965). Their practice spans curatorial work, research projects, critical theory and of course creating works of art. Their works are technically and theoretically sophisticated, engaging with the cutting edge of international critical thought and contemporary practice. They have a profoundly global address, highlighting issues of globalization, translocation and urbanization in contemporary society. Raqs utilizes technology and multimedia platforms creating immersive works that are aesthetically and intellectually engaging. This work, part of the Time Book series, focuses on notions of trace, time and memory. Raqs state, We are most interested in the texture of memory. How it is lined [...] what kinds of stains and blots and markings - like the telephone pole. Its not a smooth structure anymore. Time has layered it. The work has many different ways of trying to understand what we see in Pittsburgh now [...] All the things we have collected have the texture of an imprint, thats why the piece is called Time Book. It has that texture from the materials we engaged - from the archives of Rivers of Steel to the streets [...] What we are trying to do is present a consideration on the delusion of the permanence of anything. (artist statement, mattress.org)

Raqs is a word used to describe a form of dance but also used in Persian, Arabic and Urdu to refer to the state of existence dervishes enter into when they "whirl". Raqs reflect this sentiment of continual movement and have declared themselves a collective of 'kinetic contemplation' restless in terms of the forms and methods that it deploys. This dynamism extends to their global participation having collaborated in exhibitions, art fairs and public projects across the globe as their international scope is an inherent component of their practice. In 2013 they participated in Performa 13 and Frieze 2013 as well as holding solo exhibitions including: Extra Time, Chronus Centre, Shanghai and Raqs Media Collective: Black Box, Baltimore Museum of Art. In the last decade they have exhibited prolifically on an international level including: A Phrase, Not A Word, Nature Morte Gallery, Delhi (2012), The Great Bare Mat and Constellation, Isabel Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston (2012), The Surface of Each Day is a Different Planet, Tate Britain, London (2009), Escapement, Frith Street Gallery, London (2009), and The Co-ordinates of Everyday Life, Roomade, Brussels (2003).