Arko Datto’s new photography commission, “Courting India,” brings to life themes from the celebrated book by Nandini Das, “Courting India: England, Mughal India and the Origins of Empire,” winner of the 2023 British Academy Book Prize.
Focusing on cartography, the merging of historical and contemporary narratives, and the twilight of empires, Datto’s work traverses western and northern India. He examines historic centers of Mughal power such as Ajmer, Surat, and Agra, alongside lesser-known sites like Burhanpur and Mandu. His lens captures the evolving stories of these places, from well-preserved monuments to neglected ruins overtaken by urban expansion.
Through a combination of Mughal miniature inspired composistions and twilight photography, Datto explores the remenants of serais, tombs, and palaces. These spaces — once pivotal to empires — now stand as poignant markers of decline. While trawling the internet for clues and mining Google Maps, the artist often stumbled upon tombs hidden within forests or amidst agricultural lands near nondescript villages along highways.
In Kashmir, Datto trekked from mountain tops down to riverbeds, where he found nomadic families lingering among the ruins. In the ancient royal city of Mandu, he was struck by the eerie atmosphere of some ruins, only to later discover that Mandu regularly features on lists of the most haunted sites in the country.
Encountering these magnificent tombs and palaces of once-powerful people, now reduced to ruins, was a humbling experience.
“I aimed to visually represent the twilight of empires, both Mughal and British, and thus frequently employed dusk and night photography in this project. By visually drawing upon the scenes meticulously depicted by Nandini, this project becomes a commentary on contemporary India and the role of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in preserving the region’s history.”
— Arko Datto
Installation Images:
Arko Datto is an artist, educator, and curator from Kolkata, India, whose practice spans photography, video, and installation art. He explores critical contemporary issues and the role of images in the digital age. His work has appeared in TIME, National Geographic, The New Yorker, and The Atlantic, and has been exhibited globally at venues such as SFO Museum, Hamburger Bahnhof, and Galleri Image. Datto has published three photobooks: PIK-NIK(2018) with La bec en l’air, MANNEQUIN (2018), and SNAKEFIRE (2021) with L’Artiere Edizioni
A recipient of grants from the Prince Claus Fund and the Pulitzer Center, among others, he has participated in residencies with Light Work, the Camargo Foundation, and Rimbun Dahan and was also co-curated the Chennai Photo Biennale 2021.
Arko Datto is represented by East Wing. You can see more of his works on his artist page on this website and the East Wing Artsy page.
