A young and experimental magazine that used to interview a photographer every two days.
This interview was made in conjunction with Sleeping Through an Earthquake, Baker & Evans’ book with us, our first Special Edition.
Brendan Baker and Daniel Evans, 24 and 22, respectively, are two photographers currently living and working in London, where the streets are paved with chicken bones and hair weaves.
MOSSLESS: Why no sunsets, busy streets, or any other cute exotic Indian fancies?
BRENDAN BAKER & DANIEL EVANS: We made most of the work whilst out wandering around at night, getting lost and looking for nothing in particular. We didn’t want to go down the typical documentary route, which might go a little way to explain the absence of those sort of India cliches. We instead tried to focus on creating something fresh, that was about us being in India as opposed to being about India itself. So we kept it quite loose, shooting anything and everything that we felt compelled to and ended up with a big pile of negatives. We then spent some time with the images, editing, sticking them up on the wall, re-arranging and trying to put together a sequence and a narrative that we felt summed up our experience in the right way.
ML: How much time did you spend in India and where did you stay?
BB & DE: We were based in Ghandinagar, just outside of Ahmedabad, for about a month. There wasn’t really much around, lots of vast empty space, which was great for getting lost in but also a bit bleak at times. Plus the state we were in, Gujarat, is a ‘dry-state’ which meant no alcohol. Well, not legal alcohol anyway. You could get your hands on bootleg whiskey but then you run the risk of going blind.
BB & DE: We were based in Ghandinagar, just outside of Ahmedabad, for about a month. There wasn’t really much around, lots of vast empty space, which was great for getting lost in but also a bit bleak at times. Plus the state we were in, Gujarat, is a ‘dry-state’ which meant no alcohol. Well, not legal alcohol anyway. You could get your hands on bootleg whiskey but then you run the risk of going blind.
We traveled around a bit too, including spending a few days in Diu on the coast, where we rented mopeds and could finally buy beer as we were in a different state. But that was a fun trip, staying in a hotel right on the beach and bombing down the empty roads on janky old mopeds, finding caves and swimming in the Arabian Sea.
ML: Tell me about the title to this project—Sleeping Through an Earthquake.
BB & DE: The title comes from an 11 hour sleeper bus journey we took to Diu, where most of the ride took place on terrible pothole strewn roads in the middle of the night. We’d be trying to get some sleep in these little compartments, only to get violently bounced awake, occasionally hitting the ceiling of the bus. But the title also refers to our experience of being in India as it was such a culture shock, a completely different way of life compared to what we’re used to back in London.
BB & DE: The title comes from an 11 hour sleeper bus journey we took to Diu, where most of the ride took place on terrible pothole strewn roads in the middle of the night. We’d be trying to get some sleep in these little compartments, only to get violently bounced awake, occasionally hitting the ceiling of the bus. But the title also refers to our experience of being in India as it was such a culture shock, a completely different way of life compared to what we’re used to back in London.
ML: What was the best thing you ate while you were there?
BB & DE: The food was definitely a highlight, worlds away from the Indian you get back home, of course. But masala dosas are definitely high on the list, and the mango ice lollies were badass.
BB & DE: The food was definitely a highlight, worlds away from the Indian you get back home, of course. But masala dosas are definitely high on the list, and the mango ice lollies were badass.
