Brick-making with Birender Yadav

Birender Kumar Yadav is a multi-media artist born in Ballia, Uttar Pradesh and migrated to Jharkhand. His education slowly opened up the nuances of different mediums and expressions pushing him further towards a search for a language of his own. However, his works are grounded in the experiences of exploitation and oppression of the labouring castes and class around him.

During his research trip to Zurich, Birender Yadav investigated fired brick production. Looking at Swiss brick-making practices provides a basis for comparison with Indian methods, and also a glimpse into the countries’ respective social-political realities.

Can you share more about your early experiences growing up in Jharkhand and how they influenced your artistic journey? What sparked your initial interest in the brick-making industry, and how did this interest evolve into a central theme in your work?

Dhanbad is a very old and famous coal mine in India. My father was working as an ironsmith, making and repairing tools of the workers in the mines. I grew up seeing all these workers, their struggles, their life and everything surrounding their work, as we were staying in the quarters in the township. I think these things organically crept in my work. During my school and college days I used to do outdoor paintings in these sites only, which were part of my studies. But, it was not a conscious attempt till I entered my college in Fine arts. My chance encounter with the brick kiln workers who spoke in the same native language led me to know more about them. Slowly I started visiting them regularly , then documenting their work and life. It was only after I completed my fine arts course, when I actually started looking back at the documentation and the work I did with them, that I realised I already was in the process of something. It was then it became consciously what you might call a central thematic. I was always doing something concerning labour and their struggles etc but from then on it became a more conscious attempt in articulating through the nuances of aesthetics. 

How do you balance personal expression with the larger socio-political messages in your art?

As I said earlier to be political was an organic process coming out of the conditions and the life I experienced. I could only sharpen the artistic expressions that aligned with my understanding of the life I experienced. I understood, and I wish to change. The personal is deeply embedded in the socio-political. I can only say that my personal is a specific expression of the general socio-political discourses.

How do you compare the brick production methods in India with those in Switzerland? What contrasts or insights have you uncovered? What was the most significant takeaway from observing the environmental and labor practices in Swiss brick manufacturing, and how do they compare to those in India?

In 1865, the Swiss-German Basel mission set up a brick factory in where they started making the  terracotta roof tiles and exported to Europe. Then the British took control and in 1977 it came under Indian hands. They set up 7 factories of which some are still functional. I saw an active brick factory in Switzerland named Lohner ziegelei AG. Almost every work is done with the machines. It’s a well organised factory. Generally in India the brick factories are in the open, but in Switzerland it’s a multi-storey building. They mix local clay or mix raw materials from outside and make bricks. They import the raw materials because it’s cheaper, as labour is very expensive. Firing is done with an electric oven. Open firing is not allowed in Switzerland. They also import solid bricks from outside as it’s cheaper than producing in Switzerland. The labourers are largely migrants from countries like Sri Lanka , Italy etc. Clay preparation  is done by machine and virtually nothing is done manually. They have made wooden shelves in rooms for drying. Generally the clay work is messy, but the factories are super clean.

In India brick making is still labour intensive and almost all the kilns are in the open. The kilns are still using conventional firing/ drying unlike the electric ovens in Switzerland. I think though there are impacts on the environment in the open process, and labour injustice involved in comparison to the western models, it would be very superficial understanding to say without taking in the historical realities like colonisation etc. into consideration.

How did the research in Zurich influence or change your artistic practice?

I could clearly see the difference of brick production in a first world country, such as their strict labour laws, environmental safeguards etc. However the bricks are mostly imported from other countries where they are made!

I have been documenting the brick factories in India, the brick kiln workers, their struggles and issues related in the process etc. which is actually very hard. But because of the residency I could see a different perspective towards the whole industry.

In Switzerland, brick production is not very active; they don’t know about the production process and the background history.

How is the brick-making industry different in both countries?

I didn’t face much challenge except for the language. The brick making techniques are quite different. As I said earlier most of the work in India is done manually and each brick factory has around 1000-1500 labourers. But in Switzerland the work is done majorly only with machinery and there are around 20-30 people working in the factory. In India brick production is tied to rural labour and traditional methods whereas in Switzerland its completely urban industrial process.

After completing the research trip, how do you plan to integrate the contrasts between Swiss and Indian brick production into future artistic projects?

I am trying to develop a collaborative project with the architect and artist Nele Dechmann on the socio-economic disparities through a visual narrative. There are various aspects which I am trying to look into, like traditional and industrial processes, the difference between uniqueness of the manual process and the absence of life in the industrial process. These are some initial thoughts and responses; I would contemplate further how it could be incorporated into my work. But I can surely say these experiences are directing me towards a multi-media/disciplinary approach where I could marry both manual and industrial thinking and processes.