Vesham

Kerala’s art forms are where I return most often. Kathakali, the dance-drama of elaborate make-up, towering costume and eloquent hands. Mohiniyattam, all grace and rhythm. Theyyam, the ritual performance in which a dancer, painted and crowned, is believed to become the deity before the temple.

Vesham is the moment of that transformation. Alongside the performers sit the mural traditions of Kerala’s temples and palaces — intricate, luminous, and still painted today.