Maybe we as humans had begun to forget the sheer importance of touch in a world that links us up in so many virtual, intangible ways. However, the virus, by forcing us apart, has reminded us of the inescapable fact: we live in our bodies. Everything we touch has its own specific shape, texture, and firmness, its own special resistance to the pressure we place on it. Every hug feels different because everyone you hug takes up space in the world in a different way. The feeling you’re trying to share in a hug is all wrapped up in its embodiment in space and time. These unprecedented circumstances had us wondering how it would feel like when we hug people again. Will we have to relearn the protocol, or will muscle memory kick in? Will our nerve endings have been deadened or hyper-sensitised by abstinence? But one thing we do know is that our body is hardwired for touch. As a result, this series is an attempt to depict the human desire for contact, as well as how we have all been forced to improvise on how we soothe and comfort ourselves by simulating the sense of human touch as nearly as possible.
“I’m a creative director and stylist from Pune, India. In the journey of discovering my style, I frequently find myself consuming various forms of media like music, photos and films and deriving inspiration from them. As an artist, my work strives to communicate with people and evoke emotions using fashion and art. I want to keep creating things I love, and I want my work to affect people in whatever way it can.” – Niharika Tilve.
