Ulka Chauhan lives and works in Zürich and Mumbai. These varied geographies come together to inform her work and shape her visual language. Being rooted on two grounds contours her identity and compassionate world view. Born in Mumbai, Ulka studied in India, Switzerland and the US and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a major in Finance and Economics from Babson College in Boston. She previously worked in advertising at Young & Rubicam in NYC and in Mumbai before embarking on her journey into photography.
Series
photoSCHWEIZ 2022
8 images
Portraits of a drag artiste self-generating into a glittering persona are an important record of a powerful artistic process - that of exploring, creating and witnessing one’s own transformation, gaining freedom through constructing oneself as a work of art. Healthcare professional by day, drag queen by night, the protagonist of these intimate portraits takes his time building up his female persona, blurring the lines between the two spheres of his being; his reflection in each mirror escaping the rigid boundaries of gender identity. The tight close ups of this glamorous drag queen take us into an intimate space where the performer is changing, both literally and metaphorically before our eyes. These are moments of strength and fragility, the heightened make-up both an impenetrable armour that shields vulnerabilities as well as reveals a fiercely flamboyant form of self expression.
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