In Memoriam: John Mandeen
1943-2024
A Tribute by his wife, Nini Mandeen
John Mandeen, came to Pondicherry from California, in October 1968 as a young man of 24 and was accepted by the Mother as an Ashramite.
He helped set up the first screen printing workshop in the Ashram Press. All birthday cards with the Mother’s symbol in those days were screen printed there besides book covers.
He took up photography in the late 1970s and got seriously into it by the 80’s, documenting Auroville in all its aspects very extensively, including the Matrimandir.
The Photos of John Mandeen
Since 1980 he was part of the Prisma Team with Franz and Tim and they did all the publicity work for Aurelec. In 1994 he took photos for the first Auroville Exhibition at the visitor’s centre which was updated several times over the years. He was the photographer for the Auroville Today team till writers with snap and shoot cameras took over the job. He taught photography at the school in Aspiration school to many Auroville kids, all adults now, some of who ended up becoming photographers themselves.
Most of the photos of the initial publications of Prisma like the architecture books carry his photos. Later he was involved in doing pre-press work for other Prisma projects as well as projects of the Ashram Archives. Recently he was working with the Ashram Archives on a new book they are bringing out.
John’s Photos of Auroville
Add Work
He left for his onward journey into the arms of the Mother and Sri Aurobindo at 12:55 am on July 7, 2024.
A Tribute by Binah Thillairajah
John Mandeen was a friend of my mother’s and by extension, of mine, from our arrival in Pondicherry in 1969. When I was a child, he was one of the few adults who was always solid and consistent. I would wander down the empty streets of Pondi popping in to visit him when I felt like it and he welcomed my impromptu appearances. He seemed amused by my free spirit but also required a certain decorum and quiet in his presence. He would let me sit on a chair in the corner of his silkscreen studio as he printed colorful Mother symbols for hours. It was only last year that I asked and he told me that he had been printing the symbols on the birthday cards that Mother gave to so many people. That was the sort of person John was, a great listener but private and circumspect when it came to himself.
He showed his compassion and interest through his actions and his photography. He was certain that Auroville would manifest. He contributed to early Auroville life by mentoring young Aurovilians, teaching photography, and offering his photographic skills to Auroville publications. He had little patience for drama or fuss while emanating a certitude in Mother and Sri Aurobindo. He has taken some of my favorite photos of myself. In them, I can see clarity and attention to detail that I didn’t have for myself as a teenager. This unique perspective is in John’s photos regardless of the subject matter. They are nuanced and the more I look at them the more I appreciate John so perhaps the best way to share a tribute to John is to share his art.
We will miss his physical presence and yet he is inextricably intertwined with the early years of Auroville with all his photos in the Auroville archives, the printed birthday cards, and all the people he so generously uplifted in his quiet way. Our hearts and love go out to his wife, Nini.