Before the Sun by Karthik Pandain

Karthik Pandian is an artist living and working in Los Angelous, California. His work has been shown in numerous exhibitions and his films have been showcased in museums and exhibitions as well. His MFA is from Art Center College of Design and his BA is from Brown University.

Karthik Pandian’s solo exhibition Before the Sun is on display at Midway Contemporary Art from September 18^th through November 6^th, 2010. This exhibition combines with film and architecture to create a unique sort of art that is more of a verb then a noun. This piece is a verb because it is an idea and an experience.

The structure of the piece is packed earth transported here and molded into a perfectly proportional square platform, with a smaller square platform on top to form two steps. Atop these platforms are two glass columns housing 16mm film projectors. These projects play a loop of film, one column playing the sunrise, one playing the sunset. These projections are pointed in the eastern and western corners of the gallery.

Additional details of the piece that make it an experience is the audio and extras in the film. The audio includes sound captured from the site of the film which is accompanied by the scraping of an archeologist’s tools and, at the end of the loop, a loud crack from a firework. The films also feature the shadows of people as they shuffle in front of the camera, sometimes alone, and sometimes with children. Their footsteps are part of the audio, though muffled mostly by the digging noises.

Image from: http://www.southwillard.com/page/37