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Max Mueller Bhavan | India

Objects of Freedom

What represents freedom? The perception of being free varies from person to person. Here are some objects that artists relate to freedom.

  • <strong>Gaurav Ogale</strong><br /> <br /> This horse was given to me by my grandfather when I was a teenager. To be honest, I have never thought about this object as much as I did when I was writing this. Perhaps because I don't tend to define objects that are almost a part of me, they mean different things to me at different times. Or maybe because it has been with me all along, in every house I have lived in. It’s always been placed prominently in every home and I don’t remember a single day when I haven’t looked at it. 'A horse with wings'; sounds like it would be a light little sculpture, right? It’s only when you lift it you realize how heavy it is. Casted entirely in iron, I have always thought of it as an ironic piece of expression – when you look at it from a distance, it gives you a sense of being free, curious, taking that leap as if there isn’t any barrier. But it’s only when you get closer, try to carry it, you realise how something so delicate can make you gasp for breath.<br /> <br />Just like the idea of freedom. © Gaurav Ogale
    Gaurav Ogale

    This horse was given to me by my grandfather when I was a teenager. To be honest, I have never thought about this object as much as I did when I was writing this. Perhaps because I don't tend to define objects that are almost a part of me, they mean different things to me at different times. Or maybe because it has been with me all along, in every house I have lived in. It’s always been placed prominently in every home and I don’t remember a single day when I haven’t looked at it. 'A horse with wings'; sounds like it would be a light little sculpture, right? It’s only when you lift it you realize how heavy it is. Casted entirely in iron, I have always thought of it as an ironic piece of expression – when you look at it from a distance, it gives you a sense of being free, curious, taking that leap as if there isn’t any barrier. But it’s only when you get closer, try to carry it, you realise how something so delicate can make you gasp for breath.

    Just like the idea of freedom.
  • Objects of Freedom: Oliver Pötzsch © Oliver Pötzsch
    Freedom for me is ... my German passport. As the godfather of an Afghan boy who escaped to Germany in 2015, I now know how valuable this piece of paper is. I often ask myself why this thing is actually allowed to decide how free a person is. Having a German passport gives me the opportunity to travel anywhere in the world. Our godson Ahmad was not even allowed to leave the state of Bavaria in the beginning. Does a passport make a person free? And why do some passports make you freer than others?
  • <strong>Amitava Kumar</strong><br /> <br /> This is a drawing I made in the British Library. It is a notebook used by the writer Penelope Fitzgerald during her travels in China in 1977. No photography or photocopying was allowed; I took notes and made a drawing. The first entry read: "<i>Dec 3. Heathrow Bucharest. My shabby luggage. My sweater and trousers much too hot. My savings scanty.Am I going bald?...”  </i><br /> <br /> For me, a notebook represents freedom. I like that what I think of as freedom is portable and light. And I can’t lose it as easily as a pen. You might ask, why not a book? They are in danger, after all. Books are often banned by dictators and ideologues, doesn’t a book really represent freedom? I like the argument and, believe me, books are some of my best friends. But my greater fondness is for notebooks. Especially a new notebook or one that has still got blank pages. There is an openness! © Amitava Kumar
    Amitava Kumar

    This is a drawing I made in the British Library. It is a notebook used by the writer Penelope Fitzgerald during her travels in China in 1977. No photography or photocopying was allowed; I took notes and made a drawing. The first entry read: "Dec 3. Heathrow Bucharest. My shabby luggage. My sweater and trousers much too hot. My savings scanty.Am I going bald?...”  

    For me, a notebook represents freedom. I like that what I think of as freedom is portable and light. And I can’t lose it as easily as a pen. You might ask, why not a book? They are in danger, after all. Books are often banned by dictators and ideologues, doesn’t a book really represent freedom? I like the argument and, believe me, books are some of my best friends. But my greater fondness is for notebooks. Especially a new notebook or one that has still got blank pages. There is an openness!
  • Objects of Freedom: Susanne Asgodom © Susanne Asgodom
    For me, freedom means being able to communicate with people anywhere in the world digitally.
  • <strong>Gurjeet Singh</strong><br /> <br /> As a child, I often would watch my mom and sisters working on the sewing machine at home. When they would stitch or knit, I’d help them thread the needle, and sit beside them while they created outfits for the people in my village. I developed a keen interest, the various processes, and stiches. But those around me would warn my parents not to let me work on the machine. They would reprimand me for sitting among girls, and ask me to play outside and do "boy" things. back then, I wasn't impacted, but now I realise how this impacted my opinions and behaviour. When I made my first soft sculpture, my classmates presumed that “it's by a female artist”. But I continued to work; exploring through the threads of love, beads of passion, and colours of equality.<br /> © Gurjeet Singh
    Gurjeet Singh

    As a child, I often would watch my mom and sisters working on the sewing machine at home. When they would stitch or knit, I’d help them thread the needle, and sit beside them while they created outfits for the people in my village. I developed a keen interest, the various processes, and stiches. But those around me would warn my parents not to let me work on the machine. They would reprimand me for sitting among girls, and ask me to play outside and do "boy" things. back then, I wasn't impacted, but now I realise how this impacted my opinions and behaviour. When I made my first soft sculpture, my classmates presumed that “it's by a female artist”. But I continued to work; exploring through the threads of love, beads of passion, and colours of equality.
  • Objects of Freedom: Stefanie Samida © Stefanie Samida
    One of my bikes means freedom to me. After all, nothing is nicer than just pedaling off on it and letting yourself drift - especially when you're 'new' to a city.
  • Objects of Freedom: Nandita Das © Nandita Das
    When I think of freedom, I think of many things, many people, many moments in my life. But if I have to choose one object that represents freedom for me, it would be the pen. While I do feel a sense of empowerment that freedom brings when I tell a story as a filmmaker or when I play a character as an actor or I give an impassioned talk as a speaker, but I feel it the most when I sit down to write. I am alone with myself and my thoughts, feelings, dreams, dilemmas and concerns. There is no other gaze. That is when I truly feel free.

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