Dayanita Singh's 'Offset Artist' Practice Redefines Photography Through Books and Installations

Dayanita Singh describes herself as an 'offset artist,' distancing her practice from conventional photography. Born in New Delhi, she initially studied typography before a university assignment photographing tabla player Zakir Hussain in Bombay led to her first photobook in 1986. Singh's mother, Nony Singh, supported her studies at New York's International Center of Photography using dowry money. Her work draws inspiration from literature like Rainer Maria Rilke's 'Letters to a Young Poet' and music, particularly classical traditions. She criticizes contemporary photography exhibitions as 'fossilized' for relying on wall-mounted prints. Instead, Singh creates book objects, boxes, and 'museums' like File Museum (2012) and Museum Bhavan (2013). Her installation Pothi Khana (Archive Room, 2018) was shown at the 57th Carnegie International. Through Spontaneous Books, she produces unconventional formats like Kochi Box (2017), allowing viewers to curate displays. Recent work includes Box 507 (2019), commissioned by the Geoffrey Bawa Foundation, and photographic montages inspired by Junichiro Tanizaki's 'In Praise of Shadows.' Singh's exhibition at Frith Street Gallery in London runs through 9 November, and Steidl republishes 'Zakir Hussain Maquette' in September.