Meet Desmond Lazaro’s In-coming Passengers

Text by Huzan Tata

The artist traces the journey of his ancestry through his creations

Click on any image to view in larger gallery

Sometimes, the best way to tell your story is through art. Desmond Lazaro, born in England, hails from an Indian family and is the owner of a PIO (person of Indian origin) card – a mark of his identity. The journey to receiving this card led him to find stories, family trees and people, in order to trace his ancestry. In this brilliant show, The In-Coming Passengers, Lazaro brings out his story through drawings, film and texts, in an attempt to portray the struggles of immigrants. Art, unlike the world, truly has no boundaries.

5 Questions with the artist, Desmond Lazaro

Artistic Motivations “My family…”
Inspirations “Everything inspires me…”
On the wall at home “Frank Auerbach, Edward Hopper (Nighthawks), David Hockney (Typhoo tea), James Whistler (Whistler’s Mother), Manaku (Siege of Lanka), Nainsukh (Crossing the Ganga), Rembrandt (Self Portrait at the Age of 63), Johan Vermeer (Vermeer’s Hat), Jasper Johns (Numbers in Colour), The Wilton Diptych.”
Concerns that find a place in your art? “Lack of painting.”
If not an artist, you would be… “a writer.”