he meandered away
in to land unknown and unseen
hidden away in the depths of bliss
shadows danced through the night till they faded away into the dim light
seen through a kaleidoscope of memories
it took him away
it took him home new yet familiar
he followed the trail that had never been made

Nature Morte is pleased to announce an exhibition of a new series by Bharat Sikka, titled Waiting for Midnight. Taking the name from his daughter's poem, this series offers a visual ode to Salvador Do Mundo, a village in Goa, where he has spent significant time with his family. These photographs are a culmination of what has been seen, sensed and experienced in Goa over the past 15 years.

Waiting for Midnight revisits a collection of over 60 Polaroids that Sikka had taken over the years with his Polaroid SX 70 Vintage camera. The instant film captures a moment in time and produces a physical, tangible image that cannot be replicated. The immediacy of the process creates many unique, spontaneous and authentic moments. A sliver of these were further developed into large-scale archival digital photographs, simulating a dream-like state, blurring the line between the past and the present.

The imagery focuses on the mundane and the mysterious. A Nutcracker, a Santa Claus sculpture, and a Jenga Christmas Tree hint at the end of year festivities; a pink plastic jug and a pineapple assemblage suggest the everyday. This body of work found its tune and was completed in the 20 days leading to the eve of 2020 as Sikka and his family were waiting for midnight.

Bharat Sikka was born and raised in India, where he began his photographic practice before studying at the Parsons School of Design, NY. Sikka’s long term photographic projects have centred on the cultural residues and societal transformations within India, rendered with the visual language and material forms of contemporary art photography. His work subtly speaks to India’s history and regionality (of Kashmir, in Where the Flowers Still Grow), the tide of globalisation (Matter), and masculinity (Indian Men).