Mithu Sen monograph critiques academic language while documenting her anarchic art
Mapin has released a monograph titled 'Unmyth: Works and Worlds of Mithu Sen,' edited by Irina Aristarkhova, priced at Rs 3,500. This publication features five essays, including an introductory piece by Sushmita Chatterjee that explores the complexities of documenting Sen's elusive artistic practice. Identifying herself as 'an Unhuman, Uncensored, Un-national, Unhistoriographer,' Sen confronts prevailing myths about gender and nationality through her work, which encompasses eerie drawings and the 2023 installation mOTHERTONGUE. Additionally, a fictional interview presents her views on figures such as Hitler and Mr. Bean. Critics have noted the book's dry, quasi-academic tone, emphasizing the difficulty of recognizing an artist devoted to a non-monolithic identity.
Key facts
- Mithu Sen is a New Delhi-based artist whose work challenges myths of gender, class, nationality, science, and good taste.
- The monograph 'Unmyth: Works and Worlds of Mithu Sen' is edited by Irina Aristarkhova and published by Mapin.
- The book costs Rs 3,500 in hardcover and includes five essays from curators and academics.
- Sen describes her art as 'byproducts' and herself as 'an Unhuman, Uncensored, Un-national, Unhistoriographer'.
- Her 2023 installation mOTHERTONGUE involves withdrawing from 'charades of inclusion and artifices of language'.
- Sen stated in an interview that 'my discomfort is a methodology'.
- The monograph features a fictionalized interview with questions from figures like Hitler, Bhupen Khakhar, and Gayatri Spivak.
- A review in ArtReview Asia's Summer 2025 issue critiques the book for conventional language despite Sen's anarchic art.
Entities
Artists
- Mithu Sen
- Irina Aristarkhova
- Sushmita Chatterjee
- Bhupen Khakhar
- Gayatri Spivak
Institutions
- Mapin
- ArtReview Asia
Locations
- New Delhi
- India