- Lojithan Ram on his Batticaloa photohistory archive
History and art share a very close but often overlooked relationship. We see history as immutable events recorded in books, and at the same time, we often forget that art also records history, giving a unique insight into periods of time that simply cannot be found in history books.
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A collection of vintage cameras from ‘Studio Lampard’, one of Batticaloa’s original and best-known photo studios. The cameras were abandoned in the 20th Century because the studio was no longer operating[/caption]
Beyond that, art gives us the chance to capture personal histories – the kind that doesn’t make it into the broad spectrum history books. With each piece of art they produce, artists hold in their talented hands the opportunity to record a piece of history, whether present or past.
Some artists use their craft to preserve history and memory that they see is in danger of being lost, or to immortalise a moment in history so people can understand the implications it has for the future. Artist and photographer Parilojithan Ramanathan, or Lojithan Ram, as he is more casually known, is one of these artists.
The Co-Founder of the interactive visual art project “We Are From Here” that has famously documented the changing face of Slave Island over the last five years, a lot of Lojithan’s work has a strong message behind it – to think of where we are and where we are heading. In 2020, Lojithan was part of “Humanity and Earth”, a project by the Goethe Institut that saw a small group of artists travel around Sri Lanka to produce art that highlighted humanity’s complicated relationship with the Earth, with Lojithan telling a powerful photostory on the dumping of garbage and medical waste alongside the Batticaloa lagoon and the impact this has on the small communities around Batticaloa.
Lojithan’s newest project, as yet untitled, is an archival project along the vein of “We Are From Here”, that focuses on the history and development of photography in the Batticaloa area. To learn more about this newest project, as well as about Lojithan as an artist, Brunch sat down with this visionary to learn more about what he’s trying to do and what drives him to do it.
What inspires you as an artist, and what kind of art do you normally produce?
In my art, I use a variety of mediums and techniques, such as pen and ink drawings, collages with photographs, and printmaking, such as woodcuts and mono silkscreens.
It was a strange accident that drew me into the world of painting. Despite my natural inclination to draw and spend time with cameras since childhood, I studied Carnatic music in school from Grades six to 10 as my love for music grew. When I was in Grade 10, my class teacher requested that I create artwork to be shown in the classroom, and when she saw it, she was blown away and informed the principal, other teachers, and my parents. They all came together and concluded that I should change my major from music to art.
“Learn art solely for higher education results, and don’t think of it as life,” my art teacher would always warn me in high school, “it is extremely difficult to make a living as an artist. During their careers, famous artists like Vincent Van Gogh were despised by the public and their personal lives were traumatic. So don’t wait to become an artist”. However, my unfavourable feelings about what he stated pushed me to look for positives. Then I attended the Ramanathan Academy of Fine Art, University of Jaffna, where I earned a four-year degree in art and design. And it was in Jaffna that I created the groundwork for a complete resource base to support my art practices, including photography.
Then there were the classes on “Sociopolitics of Art Making” that I took at university that motivated me. I was influenced by many of the art shows I saw in galleries, as well as a few other teachers and speakers, including my high school art teacher.
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A beautiful vintage portrait of a Tamil couple taken in a well-known antique studio in Batticaloa. The year of capture is uncertain[/caption]
How did you get involved in the ‘We Are From Here’ project?
To complete my four-year special degree program in art and design at the University of Jaffna, I needed professional art practice experience from a well-established artist, so I reached out to Firi (Rahman) and came to Slave Island to work with him and meet the criteria for professional qualification.
The residents of Slave Island welcomed me as a member of their society, which caused me great delight. I didn’t know anything about Slave Island until I met Firi. But, after only a short time, I realised that Slave Island is a location where people of many religions, languages, and social statuses work together in unity and live as one.
Because Slave Island was renowned for crime, drugs, and social evils, Firi and I explored the fundamental elements that led the start of the “We Are From Here” project to do something committed to the Slave Island community. Although the people who live there have been affected by the changes brought about by urban development, “We Are From Here” intended to illustrate that there was another side to Slave Island that had so many different viewpoints that needed to be shared with the rest of the world.
You are currently working on something similar to the ‘We Are From Here’ project in your hometown of Batticaloa. Tell us more about it and what you are doing.
I’m working on an entirely archive-related project, the seed of which came from the “We Are From Here” project. The goal of the project is to capture the history of the camera and photography in the area in order to better comprehend Batticaloa’s culture and heritage. I’m hoping that the images shot in Batticaloa after the arrival of the first camera can attest to reading Batticaloa’s history. While studying art history and photography in Jaffna and working on the “We Are From Here” project in Colombo, I realised that old images considerably aid us in discovering authentic history via trauma and oral histories. These images are more than just pictures; they have a tale to tell. They serve as a powerful reminder of how we interpret our culture and history.
My sister’s husband gave me some antique cameras a few years ago that he had acquired from a friend of his. I was very curious about these ancient cameras and where they came from. I had a lot of unanswered questions. We have not yet discussed the early art and photographic history of Batticaloa, and we have no plans to do so.
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An example of a Vario, a two-leaf photography device developed by the German camera firm Gauthier in 1912, that first came to Sri Lanka in the 1930s. This example of a Vario was found at the Studio Lampard, which was believed to have been founded as far back as the 19th Century (the exact date is unclear)[/caption]
So, I began collecting oral histories, items, and memories to record for future generations to learn about Batticaloa’s history. Initially, I began with my family, hoping to hear stories from my mother and her sister about antique studios, vintage photography, and then moved on to the owners of the early photography studios in Batticaloa, going through their childhood recollections with them. I’m currently in Colombo, and because of the pandemic, I’m continuing to work on this project over the phone with the assistance of some of my pals.
Despite Batticaloa’s rich legacy, there are no well-documented archives, publications, libraries, or museums in Batticaloa for reading the correct history of Batticaloa, except for the oral histories. It is therefore vital to properly document it in order to bridge the gap between such a scarcity of resources. I hope that through this archive, the appropriate history can be passed onto future generations in the right way.
What was the most interesting or surprising thing you’ve discovered in archiving Batticaloa’s photography history?
What has been astonishing to me since the beginning of this endeavour is that there are many who know the stories, but there is no one who wants to hear the stories. When I asked people for their stories for our archiving initiative, they all had something personal to say. When no one hears about it, such stories go away.
So far, I’ve just discovered the names of Batticaloa’s vintage studios. There are still incredible things to be found.
Your previous work like ‘Humanity and Earth’ and ‘We Are From Here’ is also work that has great social value. Do you think it’s important for an artist’s work to have a social impact, and why?
The Earth, nature, and everything on it are all common to us, and they should all be viewed in a sustainable light. Its resources belong to everyone. Yet, some people abuse the environment owing to their selfish demands and attitudes, which has an impact on the entire cycle of the environment, as well as on humans and their civilizations.
Reflecting on social concerns and inequality as an independent artist would be my artistic contribution to society as a whole. However, not only artists, but everyone else needs to be socially responsible. We must choose our own medium and work through it in order to fulfil our community’s responsibilities.
What are your hopes for the Batticaloa archiving project? And what else are you working on at the moment?
I hope to be able to build an archive that is accessible to everyone for their future study needs – photographs, video documentaries, text, and other sorts of documents and items, as well as recordings, that can be used to learn about Batticaloa’s legacy and cultural past.
For me, my project will be a success if it does not deteriorate in the short term and develops into a museum in the future that can provide documentary participation opportunities for young people interested in photography and preservation.
Apart from this, I also teach visual arts at St. Thomas College, Mount Lavinia, and serve as a visual archivist and photographer for the “Family Art Collection Archiving Project” alongside renowned photographer Dominic Sansoni. I’m currently working in Colombo on a project to capture the challenges of individuals who are constantly displaced in the name of urban development.
Behance: Lojithan Ram
Facebook: Lojithan Ram
Instagram: @lojithan_ram/@blacklines_brownpaper
