Indo-Canadian photographer Bhargavi Joshi’s latest project is going viral for shedding light on the violations faced by women across the world. Now, meet the artist.
nine women in white with stoic faces stare at us from Indian-Canadian artist Bhargavi Joshi’s (31) photo series, PRINTiED Violation. It went viral on social media last month. But more than the women, the black marks of oppression in the images speak of the violations women face.
Joshi, who says she experienced “a fair share of violations” in her life, has used black paint to suggest the oppressions women across the world face — force, rape, genital mutilation, marital rape, female infanticide, and so on.
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“I’ve had to fight them growing up, and even today. Most people are aware of the problems depicted in this campaign. These crimes are happening all around us. But the extremely high occurrence of these issues has desensitised people towards them. I want this campaign to be a stark reminder that ignoring them doesn’t make them disappear,” says Joshi, who shuttles between Los Angeles, Mumbai, Vancouver and Toronto. Hailing from a family of visual artists, film-makers and architects, Joshi grew up in Mumbai and Toronto, in a creatively charged environment, and pursued a degree in Applied Photography from Sheridan College, Toronto.
{{/usCountry}}“I’ve had to fight them growing up, and even today. Most people are aware of the problems depicted in this campaign. These crimes are happening all around us. But the extremely high occurrence of these issues has desensitised people towards them. I want this campaign to be a stark reminder that ignoring them doesn’t make them disappear,” says Joshi, who shuttles between Los Angeles, Mumbai, Vancouver and Toronto. Hailing from a family of visual artists, film-makers and architects, Joshi grew up in Mumbai and Toronto, in a creatively charged environment, and pursued a degree in Applied Photography from Sheridan College, Toronto.
{{/usCountry}}A closer look at the photo project brings to the fore a series of subtle messages. The clothes worn by the women are made from medical gauze. This is to symbolise the wrapping of their wounds that society is adamant on concealing. The colour white is employed to shift the focus from physical traits, race and culture, to the commonality — that they are all women. The artist consciously wanted the women to look like delicate porcelain figures, to symbolise how our patriarchal society regards the female sex as weak.
Online warrior
Joshi feels that the ease of reaching a large number of people has become easy thanks to social media. But there are downsides as well. “There’s limitless cyber bullying, slut-shaming and trolling. All this can have devastating effect on those trying to share a story, honestly hoping it might inspire and help others,” says the artist.
Joshi is currently in the process of shooting around 12 more concepts. Her upcoming series addresses domestic, child and elderly abuse.
Log on
Check out the photo project, PRINTiED Violation, by Bhargavi Joshi on bhargavijoshi.com