Ashok Ahuja

At a time when painting was only done on paper/canvas, how did you begin to explore digital art?

I started using a computer as early as 1985. Gradually, new interfaces made it possible to work with graphics, and both still and moving images.

Tell us about your first exp­erience with the form.

Whether it’s an object or image—moving or static—the principles are the same.

Allured talks about exp­loring possibilities in in-betweens; has digital art more possibilities of bridging gaps?

Yes, for in the digital realm you are freed from the constraints of matter. Also you are not bound by any med­ium or technique. You can pick up a tool that comes from a painter’s studio or a photographer’s dark-room.

Your latest works seems to fuse the artist and filmmaker in you.

Possibly, for some works in the exhibition have multiple framed units. For me there is no difference in approaching a film or a single image.

How has digital art evolved over the decades?

Things become easier with digital technology, but with it being widely used the challenges are greater.

There are few self-taught artists that have made a name for themselves.

After being taught, there has to be unlearning. Everyone is self-taught!

You’ve won awards for two of your directorial ventures....

Yes, my films Aadhar­shila and Vasundhara won critical acclaim.

You’re the author of The Third Race. How did you get down to writing a book?

It came out of my research at Harvard on the narrative and the search for universality in the arts.

What about social media?

I’m not on it!

What is your latest piece of digital equipment?

A pigment ink printer.