The Aesthetic Shape of History Exhibit Preview

Artist: Anthony Cerulli

Artist Bio

Anthony Cerulli is an historian of religions and medicines in South Asia. He is Professor of South Asian Studies in the Department of Asian Languages and Cultures, Director of the Center for South Asia, and Director of the Health and Humanities Program at UW–Madison. His photo-ethnographic art project, Manuscriptistan, began informally in 2003 and continued until 2015, when Anthony was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship, enabling him to launch Manuscriptistan as an official art project. He has been publishing and exhibiting his photographic documentation of manuscript cultures in India since 2018.

Exhibit Statement

What happens when we view Indian manuscripts and manuscript archives as art objects and spaces? The Aesthetic Shape of History depicts my reflections on this question. Instead of looking at the contents of manuscripts, which scholars have been studying for centuries, the exhibit’s images show archival spaces, the documents they hold, and the people who work in them. On one hand, I want these images to convey glimpses into how and where historical data and ideas have been and continue to be assembled in India. In doing so, on the other hand, I want to show how particular aesthetic forms that are used to convey history can simultaneously be visually compelling, irrespective of one’s knowledge of India, and evocative of the politics of omission that often accompany knowledge selection, curation, and preservation. The aesthetic shape of India’s history as seen through some of its manuscript archives reveals undeniable material heft, structural complexity, and beauty. For anyone interested in studying history and working in archives, in India or elsewhere, I hope the exhibit highlights the value of bringing sensual, spatial, and artistic awareness and consideration to the things with which, and the spaces in which we conduct research.