"I was fortunate to stumble upon the materials. All the beads were bought from a seller who solicited my custom on a beach. They are displayed in a circuitous line which is similar to trails made in the sand by sea snails, as were observable on the same beach. These kinds necklaces are worn by almost everyone in Auroville and by countless travellers that I've met in India over the years. As a simple statement about identity, ‘love beads’ carry a great deal of transcultural meaning and signify some sort of tenuous meeting point between east and west. I really wanted to make a piece of work that speaks about the presence of Europeans in Auroville and our attempt to assimilate the Indian context that we’ve impressed ourselves upon. On some level we Indophiles today are all descendants of the hippy movement, but crucially, our interpretation of the countercultural truth-seeker archetype is also tied to the post colonial subjects first made visible in films like Louis Malle’s 'Phantom India’ (1969) and Satyajit Ray’s ‘Pratidwandi’ (1970). Both great films, if you get a chance to see them. I do sense that disillusionment about the worlds that we are born into is more widespread today than when these movies were made. My impression is that increasing numbers of people are seeking alternative ways to be." [DB]