Monica Dhaka’s Before You See the Scar transforms scarred skin into landscapes to challenge how we see survivors

I am Monica Dhaka, a visual artist working between London and Mumbai and a graduate of University of the Arts London. My project, Before You See the Scar, will be exhibited at Art Space Portsmouth on 24–25 October 2026 as part of Photo Fringe 2026. I would love to invite the local community to see the work and join the conversation behind it.

I created this project to challenge how we look at women who have survived acid attacks and burn violence. Too often, their scars become the first thing people notice, before their names, personalities or the lives they are building.

I made the work with survivors at Brave Souls Foundation in Delhi. Their accounts describe violence connected to control, demands for money, family disputes and punishment for refusing what someone else wanted. These experiences ask us to look beyond the attack itself and consider the attitudes that enable gender-based violence.

Before photographing the women, I spent almost a month getting to know them through shared meals and conversations. I wanted them to understand my approach and feel comfortable deciding whether to participate. We held group and individual interviews, taking breaks and returning to conversations whenever someone needed more time.

The first part of the project presents close-up photographs of scarred skin. I isolate its folds, textures and contours, using colour adjustments to create images that resemble landscapes. I also mirror and repeat fragments of these photographs to form abstract patterns.

I wanted viewers to encounter these images before knowing their source. If they appreciate a texture as a landscape, what changes when they discover it is a photograph of a survivor’s skin? That moment invites them to question their own assumptions.

The second part introduces the women through black-and-white portraits and texts shaped from our conversations. Once viewers understand where the landscapes come from, curiosity might turn into pity. At that point, I want them to hear what the women have to say about their lives, hopes and how they want the world to treat them.

The smiling portraits were a deliberate creative decision. I wanted to celebrate the women, make the experience enjoyable and give them space to feel beautiful and express joy and confidence. Their smiles do not erase their experiences. They show parts of their lives that are often missing from how survivors are represented.

My aim is to open a conversation about how society treats survivors after violence: the staring, blame, rejection and barriers to everyday opportunities. I want visitors to consider why someone’s appearance should determine whether she is welcomed or respected.

Please visit Art Space Portsmouth on 24–25 October to experience the work. The question at its heart is simple: who do we choose to see first, the woman or the scar?

The scar is part of her story, not the whole story.