Essays

Wordscape by Udit Duseja

Presentation at the 17. poesiefestival berlin 2016 - Berliner Akademie der Künste / Photos: © gezett.de  - www.gezett.de
Presentation at the 17. poesiefestival berlin 2016 - Berliner Akademie der Künste / Photos: © gezett.de - www.gezett.de
Sie benötigen den Flashplayer , um dieses Video zu sehen Concept, composition - Udit Duseja; Animation - dandelion + burdock
Commissioned by and produced in co-operation with Goethe-Institut / Max Mueller Bhavan Mumbai

"Wordscape" is a multi-faceted sound composition, adding new dimensions to recited poetry. Conceived as an audio-visual installation, it explores the diversity in the regional languages from South Asia and Germany.

Presentation at the 17. poesiefestival berlin 2016 - Berliner Akademie der Künste / Photos: © gezett.de  - www.gezett.de
Udit Duseja Sound Installation - Presentation at the 17. poesiefestival berlin 2016 - Berliner Akademie der Künste / Photos: © gezett.de - www.gezett.de
Poetry is often associated with immediacy. As a form of writing, poetry perhaps has achieved the fine balance between the physical and the emotional. While it appeals to our emotions, feelings, intellect and our intuitive understanding, with its play of words, it adheres to its set parameters involving the structuring of these words, their sound, rhythm and meter to communicate. All these characteristics need to be kept in mind when a poem is translated or even when it is put to a new rhythm or sound.

The work is part of “Poets Translating Poets” a two-year-long project initiated in July 2015 by the Goethe-Institut Mumbai, in collaboration with Literaturwerkstatt Berlin and in Cooperation with Deutsche UNESCO, with an aim to create a platform for poets from South Asia and Germany to translate each other’s works. By bringing together 51 poets including 17 German poets from across 20 languages through literary encounters in several South Asian locations, this project promises to stimulate new literary networks and open new avenues for transcultural understanding.

About the Artist

Udit Duseja is an independent artist and sound designer based in Mumbai.

Presentation at the
17. poesiefestival berlin 2016 - Berliner Akademie der Künste / Fotos: © gezett.de  - www.gezett.de
Presentation at the 17. poesiefestival berlin 2016 - Berliner Akademie der Künste / Photos: © gezett.de - www.gezett.de
Udit believes that sound is a powerful tool – that it affects our perception of the image and helps us to construct our understanding of a concept subconsciously. He approaches every project with a liberal attitude, bringing in a new aesthetic and focusing on special characteristics of sound which serves the storytelling well.

Since 2009, he has not only worked on a number of international features, shorts and documentaries spanning different genres but has also conceived and worked on sound design for numerous audio-visual installations and thereby creating experiences and tackling diverse subjects like space, ecology, technology and personal & local histories. Some of his most recent installations are, Sense of Space [2016], Depths & Depravity [2015], Helibot & The Mysterious Cave of Memories [2015] and Bandradesh [2014], among others. In 2015, his work was featured in Form and Substance, Miami and Aurora Festival, Dallas.

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