Class of 2020: Rhea Gupte
Rhea Gupte
Rhea Gupte is a 29 year old visual artist, photographer, and writer. Born in Mumbai, India, Rhea’s practice is an amalgamation of her skillset in various disciplines which stems from the joy of practising the creative process. Across her different bodies of work, human emotion and exploring its vulnerabilities and strengths forms a common thread. Generating minimal waste and living mindfully are values which inform her ideas as well as her way of life. You can read more about her work on her website.
“I am spending the lockdown in my home. It is a small studio apartment, in a scenic little village of Goa with plenty of natural light and quiet.”
“Being a creature of home, I’m happiest to be here. If not, perhaps close to my sister in Sydney near a beach or a garden. ”
“I am most grateful for my studio lights. A few years back I decided to start investing in some compact lighting equipment instead of renting it out, to be able to create more freely and spontaneously. I’m so glad I did as renting would be close to impossible during this time. ”
“I enjoy creating in the mornings, usually 6:00am to 11:00am I reserve for creation, exploration and writing. I also set up my lights every Monday to work on new or ongoing projects. ”
Rhea Gupte, Cultures in Curd
Rhea Gupte, Peaches
“My best friend’s three year old made a surprise gift for me which is this beautiful watercolour abstract artwork. I have placed it on my coffee table. It inspires me in knowing that even during these hard times, joy, love and kindness are what we need to focus on for the future generation. Looking at it always warms my heart. I also have a book with Monet’s paintings which are a treasure trove of inspiration, I sometimes flip through. I’m rewatching a lot of Studio Ghibli and Pixar films and some anime to have a nice cry and to laugh and escape for a bit too. ”
“ in love with a ghost - i was feeling down, then i found a nice witch and now we’re best friends ”
“This is a tough one. I’ll say Frida Kahlo. It would be a dream to be able to photograph her while we spend time together and I think we’d have a lot to talk to about. I’d like to become friends with her. ”
“It steeled my resolve in the future needing to be sustainable and kind to our planet. A lot of the systems and structures the world has been following so far have had their problems but in the face of the pandemic, they are all crumbling and impacting a large number of vulnerable people. This reality has made me think and question, even more urgently, how, I can directly and more effectively aid communities around me through my art and my life. ”
“A lot of my art is based on emotions and feelings, my own and those of others around me. So the state I am in and the state in which people are in the stories I read, in the news I watch, inevitably finds itself in my thought process. I started a self-portrait mixed media series a few weeks into the lockdown titled Isolation to explore and depict the rollercoaster of feelings felt during this time. A lot of people are going through a difficult time mentally and I hope the series allows them to feel that they are not alone. ”
“I am looking forward to going to the beach. Dipping my feet in the sand. Watching the sunset with my friends. Making a small trip to visit my parents whenever flying or taking the train is possible again. ”
Rhea Gupte, Skinned
Rhea’s Last Artwork Before Lockdown:
Before entering lockdown I started work on my Compost series where I photograph still life portraits of my weekly wet waste. Due to the nature of the series, I have been able to continue with it and it has brought me a lot of learning and peace in its calm creative process. These are the works I had just about completed before the India wide lockdown was announced.