AIA Tours, South & North India 2012-2019
When the Archaeological Institute of America decided to offer trips to India for the first time, Jackfruit designed the itineraries for tours to be operated by Exotic Journeys Pvt.Ltd, New Delhi. The two tours traverse large areas of northern and southern India and visit a wide range of sites dating from the Neolithic to the contemporary. The tours focus on the histories and aesthetics of various sites, their transformation into archaeological monuments, as well as provide insights into contemporary culture.
The Integral Nature of Things, 2013
Lata Mani’s book, published by Routledge, traces the consequences of prevailing ways of thinking that obscure the interrelations between things even as interdependence and indivisibility continually assert themselves. She explores language, labour, technology, post-structuralist theory, political rhetoric, sex, advertising, urban planning, neoliberal
globalization – interweaving observation, poetry and analysis. Working closely with the author and the publishing house, the design of the book strives to balance the seriousness of purpose and the appeal to a thinking, engaged readership and between content and design.
Link to Purchase: The Integral Nature of Things Critical Reflections on the Present
Faith, 2012
Senior Indian modern artist Manu Parekh wanted Jackfruit to curate the first solo exhibition of his paintings of spirituality, sexuality and Benaras at Art Alive, Gurgaon. Working closely with the artist and the gallery for several years, Jackfruit researched his archives, conducted interviews, commissioned essays and designed the exhibition and the accompanying catalogue. This show became a landmark event for the coherent historicization of his ouevre in the context of the both his artistic interests as well as the history of Indian modernism.
Hut-to-Hut, 2012
This project was for the Panchabhuta Conservation Foundation, which involved field research to identify and document the financial, livelihood, ecological and architectural practices of residents of Kumta town and neighbouring Kagala village in coastal Karnataka. The ethnographic research led to the writing and design of two publications as part of a series that Panchabuta developed for its Hut-to-Hut program in the Western Ghats, which involved experimental bio-climatic architecture and farm-to-table permaculture. Jackfruit also assisted in the conception and documentation of the construction of the prototype hut. Hut-to-Hut was designed by Oslo-based architecture practice Rintala Eggertson Architects. The project site became a wood workshop for students of the University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, Norway.
Varna Mythri: The Art of Rumale Chennabasaviah, 2011
Rumale Chennabasaviah (1910-1988) was a watercolour artist whose dedication to portraying the city of Bangalore, particularly its picturesque buildings and verdant flora, is renowned. Jackfruit was hired by the National Gallery of Modern Art, Bengalur, to work with independent curator K. S. Srinivasa Murthy to design the Rumale retrospective in 2011. Taking the collection held primarily by the Kabe family and a few Karnataka state institutions, Jackfruit’s task was to assist the curator to make the final selection of works for the exhibition, design a display that worked with his curatorial premise and create visual relationships between the works in the NGMA gallery to showcase Rumale’s way of looking at and painting his city. The show was extended twice due to popular demand. Jackfruit was assisted by Little River Architects in this project.
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Abe’s Story, 2009
The Heritage Network commissioned Jackfruit to design and illustrate a novel by Anthony Renwick McGill, a writer based in Dublin and Goa, about a native American preacher in the Dakotas of the 1870s. Jackfruit designed the book, developed the theme for the illustrations with Moutushi Chakraborty, who executed them. The design of the book is a twenty-first-century reimagining of nineteenth-century Wild West and Victorian print and drawing culture.
Link to Purchase: ABE’S STORY
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Halebidu Site Booklet and Internal Catalogue for the Site Museum, 2009
Jackfruit worked with art historian Katherine Kasdorf to research and write the content for the Halebidu Site Booklet. Jackfruit also designed the booklet, which is a guide to the Hoysala and later temples of Halebidu and the antiquities in the Site Museum. The booklet provides information about the history and architecture of its monuments, sculptures, materials used in their construction, antiquities on display at the museum and the current archaeological work being done by ASI in the area. Information about some monuments located near Halebidu is mentioned. Jackfruit has also designed and edited the first digital internal catalogue for the Halebidu site museum. The catalogue is divided into two volumes, which contain descriptions of 370 antiquities. Information on the material, color, original provenance, location in the museum, condition, size, period/date and a detailed description has been included for each monument.
Foundation for Indian Contemporary Art, New Delhi, 2007-2008
Jackfruit has designed publicity posters and e-mailers for the Foundation for Indian Contemporary Art’s (FICA) writing workshop (2007), Emerging Artists’ Award (2007) and Public Art Grant (2008).
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Juna Mahal, Dungarpur, Rajasthan, 2008
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Bharat Gyan Vigyan Samiti Book Design, 2008
Bharat Gyan Vigyan Samiti, through the National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore, commissioned Jackfruit to design and illustrate low-cost, Kannada language books for children in Chamrajanagar District, Karnataka. The books are part of a larger effort to encourage book-buying and reading. The themes of each of the three books are poetry, local crafts and local tourism, including religious structures, nature and science in the Male Mahadeshvara Hills and at Shivanasamudra.