Trainees at the school of necromancing 1; The speaking tree; Trainees at the school of necromancing 2 (from 'Corollary mythologies' series) 1999

Surendran Nair often works with images and icons derived from Indian mythology (particularly from his home state of Kerala), Western mythology and art history to question the meaning and significance of such iconography today. Religious imagery, for example, may recall lost values or suggest the sometimes-violent tensions between faiths in the subcontinent. The central panel of this triptych, ‘The speaking tree’, references the creation myth of the Hindu god Vishnu, who gave life to the universe through his cosmic umbilical cord. In Nair’s version, Vishnu’s cord supports traditional symbols as well as modern icons such as a mushroom cloud, in reference to the nuclear tests undertaken by India as part of ongoing tensions with Pakistan.  Through his choice of imagery, Nair toys with stereotypes of Indian identity, yet his elegant rendering and playful mixing of such symbols frustrates straightforward readings. In the tradition of satire, Nair uses exaggerated forms, strange juxtapositions and wicked humour to comment upon social norms or political situations.