Retouched
Retouched is a single-point bound book composed of ten compact discs, each placed in a jewel case. Each disc presents an auditory reinterpretation of English-language translations of select (originally oral) folklore from 19th-century British India. The unapologetically kitsch packaging and typography of the cases is a deliberate nod to the visual identity of contemporary Indian commercial products.
The soundtracks burned into each disc are produced by deconstructing, iterating, and then re-translating the English-language transliterated and translated texts of oral folklore in the Indo-Aryan and Dravidian languages. The ten selected texts are sourced from the 62 volumes of The Indian Antiquary: Journal of Oriental Research (1872–1933), founded by the archaeologist James Burgess.
Retouched employs pseudo-ethnographic tactics by presenting the compact discs as archival artifacts, inviting audiences to reflect on language hierarchy in academic texts, the authority-driven power dynamics that supervise knowledge production and history documentation, and how classification systems shape our understanding of cultural identity in the contemporary world.
Parvathy Ramesh is a sound and visual designer and researcher specializing in the history of design and material culture. Her recent research covers nineteenth- and early twentieth-century colonial exchanges, focusing on the impact of European industrialization on Indian artefacts, language and literature, and ethnographic studies through a postcolonial lens. Her creative media—sound and printed matter—serve as translations of her research findings into physical and more accessible forms. As such, she recognizes a significant reciprocal relationship between her academic and creative practices.
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