Thukral and Tagra to launch a new project at ‘The India Art Fair’

on Apr 11, 2022

Thukral and Tagra, an artist duo, are all set to debut a new interactive project on April 28 at The India Art Fair in New Delhi on April 28. The project is titled ‘and Archive’ and it builds on their game design experience and backgrounds in typography and printing to create a series of game editions and books. The book and game editions are a means of disseminating knowledge that is driven by in-depth research and delves further into the field of game design, sustainability, and self-introspection themes for all generations to engage in the practical understanding of knowledge and creativity.

Thukral and Tagra’s game editions reflect on feelings of hopelessness, daily trials and tribulations, and national issues such as climate change. Among the key works is ‘Weeping Farm, 2022’, which follows a group of women from the Indian agrarian community who are burdened with overdue debts, working odd jobs, and attempting to survive in a highly competitive world. The game follows the year-long journey of a female farmer as she struggles to survive against all odds.

By utilizing only handcrafted and eco-friendly materials, these games have been carefully designed to ensure sustainability and promote environmentally conscious products. Following a similar approach, ‘2030 Net Zero, 2022’ is a game that attempts to explore the tonnes of greenhouse gases that are added to our atmosphere each year, with the goal of reducing it to net zero.

Thukral and Tagra's book reflects on various dimensions such as nature, ecosystem, agrarian crisis, debts, suicide, rejection, shrinking employment, and much more. One of the key books is 'Weeping Farm, 2022,' which is based on explorations and observations made during the Indian agrarian crisis and focuses on the everyday battles of food insecurity, privatization, indebtedness, and so on.

“Artistic processes are unique, they are honest time-stamps and documents for future reference and retrospect. Archives are humble ledgers, and record transactions of particular time and emotions. An artist’s book should be seen as a key building block of the culture. We have always believed an artist has the potential to experiment, and manifest ideas which question the status quo, and ask for a change. The fact that art can comfort and disrupt them at the same time. We apply our skills and bring knowledge dissemination in various ways such as formats of the game which act as an extension to the book, they sit at the intersection of design and performance,” said Thukral and Tagra.

In addition to the book collection, 'Somnium Semnibus' revolves around the concept of a journey both inwards and outwards; an exercise is a humble approach to illustrating the wide variety of species present in Rani Bagh, Bombay, that compels us to think of the ecosystem around us.

Thukral and Tagra have received widespread acclaim for using visual art as a medium to express their views on a wide range of national and societal issues. Their new project aims to deliver the same message of disseminating valuable insights and perspectives while engaging with multi-generational audiences in an unconventional yet creative and educational manner.