Magic Mountain in Bangalore

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At my host family, the Kumars,’ Bangalore oncology hospital gallery Swasti, I painted watercolor portraits of chemo patients. An intensely intimate experience, I sat next to patient beds surrounded by family members or in some cases, alone. I was struck by how each individual faced his or her disease. The resulting project, Magic Mountain in Bangalore, was inspired by Thomas Mann’s view that that one must go through the deep experience of sickness and death to arrive at a higher sanity and health. Framing the exhibited portraits was a wallpaper inspired by the portrait sitters’ clothing.