Sujata Majumdar (b.1976, London) is a British visual artist of Indian descent residing in the Netherlands since 2001. She originally studied Physics at Cambridge University (1993-1997). Later she studied Photography at the Fotofactory in Amsterdam, specialising in conceptual photography and graduating in 2012. In 2015 she became Head of Conceptual Photography at the Institute of Unnecessary Research.
Her background in different cultures and disciplines drives her artistic endeavour. Her art emerges from a need to reconcile contrasting sides of her self and the world she perceives, to blur boundaries, ultimately to lead to better understanding. The pull of different tendencies in her identity compels her to constantly seek a balance – to capture in an image a harmony between order and chaos; nature and man-made; old and new. She observes and analyses commonalities and expresses this through a lens of emotion and story. The abstractions of the landscape around her reflect her heritage, and the complexity and challenges of having a hybrid identity. Her interdisciplinary projects deal with technology and automation, and their effect.
Her curiosity and broad interests fuel the diversity of her work. In 2014 she was awarded an ICT-Art Connect Residency from the European Commission for which she co-created Desirable Dossiers. She was able to give people a feel for their medical data and empower them in the choices they have in healthcare. She is currently working on Signature Print, an interdisciplinary project revitalising traditional Indian textile-printing techniques, as part of Textiel Factorij. Since May 2018 she has been Crossing Parallels artist in residence at TU Delft.
exhibitions and projects (selected):
(upcoming) Living? Surfaces with Lizan Freijsen – curated by Marion Vredeling – mar 2018
Solo exhibition Surface Tension in Brummelkamp Galerie AMC – july – nov 2018
Textiel Factorij exhibition – oct 2018, Museumfabriek (Twentse Welle), Enschede, Netherlands
Crossing Parallels residency TU Delft 2018 – may 2018 – ongoing
Nasty women Architecture – aug 2017 – Anise Gallery, London
Visualising the Home – Carlisle Photo 2017
Boundaries – storytelling my India experience – mar 2017 at Fifth Friday Sisterhood, Amsterdam
Vitrines winter exhibition at Amsterdam Medical Center – dec 2016 – AMC, Amsterdam
Quiet/Stilte – with Siobhan Wall and Tamar Rozenblat – summer exhibition jul – aug 2016 at Galerie de Witte Voet, Amsterdam
Artist of the month and Matter. Place. An Other exhibition – oct & nov 2015, Gallery 202
THEPort Hackathon – Invited as artist and healthcare specialist to collaborate on humanitarian applications of particle accelerator technology – oct 2015 CERN, Geneva, CH
CHEMCRAFT For the Love of Chemistry: Aesthetic Forms and Their Opposites, curated by CMProjects, and salon by Ideas Matter Sphere – jul-aug 2015, Espacio gallery, Shoreditch, London
the weekend show in association with New Dawn/GUP, jan 2015 Amsterdam
Stay Overnight with Roel Brekelmans and Awoiska van der Molen, curated by Rieke Righolt – oct 2014 at Lab111, Amsterdam
ICT Art Connect at FoAm and the European Commission, 11-12th may, 2014, Brussels
W-CA Contemporary Landscape Photography Open, dec 2013, Worcester, UK
‘the Fence’ at Fotofestival Naarden, 18th may – 23rd jun 2013, Naarden
‘1000 photos’ at Melkweg Gallery, jun 2013, Amsterdam
‘New’ exhibition GUP Gallery, mar 2013, Amsterdam
‘Quiet reflections on my heritage’ solo exhibition at Gallery Ashok, 12th jan – 17th mar 2013, Spuistraat 183b, 1013VN Amsterdam
Unseen 2012 portfolio pitch – sept 2012 (selected by foam and fotografenfederatie)
Graduation exhibition FOTOfactory (3-year diploma) – 1 & 2 sept 2012, Amsterdam
‘Close memories – Distant places’ at launch of the Visual Think Tank, at LiteSide festival – jul 2012
‘Marginal gardens/Tuinen op de rand’ Stadsarchief Amsterdam – August 2010
An investigative landscape – photography project in collaboration with landscape architect Patrick McCabe. Exhibition design with Marcia Nolte. Funded by the AFK (amsterdam funding for the arts) and Stadsarchief Amsterdam (city archive). More info about the project and collaboration with landscape architect Patrick Mc Cabe can be found here
‘Instant Nature’ – Dutch Design Week – October 2009
Photography of an exchange between design and nature. 8 photoworks in combination with 6 nature / design pieces. In collaboration with designers Marcia Nolte, Stijn van der Vleuten, and artist Bob Waardenburg.
‘Scapes’ – solo exhibition at Pakhuis de Zwijger – April 2009
Work is held in several private and public collections including Amsterdam UMC, Stadsarchief (City Archive) Amsterdam and Pakhuis de Zwijger.
selected publications
- novelty issue #5 sept 2016
- GUP new dawn jan 2015
- bare hill state of art ‘landscape and portrait #1’
- interartive journal of contemporary art and thought #55 – oct 2013
- interview with GUP Magazine march 2013
- GUP New Photography talent 2013 book
- publication as new talent in shutr edition 4 – out september 16th 2012
- today’s issue – no.71
selected commissions
- open state ‘hack de overheid’ hackathon publieke omroep – nov 2013
- liteside publicity photography for ‘hammam verhalen’ jan 2012 – published in de volkskrant (national dutch newspaper)
- liteside – festival 2012 – publicity photography published in de echo (amsterdam newspaper)
- bangbang! records – new york landscape for anthony collins ‘i wanna give’ 12″ record sleeve
- Cambridge University Press educational books
- grahame park neighbourhood regeneration / the wright trust
- team 189 roparun 2009
- time out amsterdam magazine
- the observer – the micro compact home interior / architecture
- a place in the sun – goa interior / lifestyle in channel 4 (uk)’s travel and property abroad magazine