Punjabi
Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan
* Punjabi language
* Punjabi people
* Punjabi dialects and languages
Punjabi may also refer to:
* Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...
: ਚਿਲਾ ਕੁਮਾਰੀ ਬਰਮਨ) is a British artist, celebrated for her radical feminist practice, which examines representation, gender and cultural identity. She works across a wide range of mediums including printmaking, drawing, painting, installation and film.
A significant figure in the
Black British
Black British people are a multi-ethnic group of British citizens of either African or Afro-Caribbean descent.Gadsby, Meredith (2006), ''Sucking Salt: Caribbean Women Writers, Migration, and Survival'', University of Missouri Press, pp. 76–7 ...
Art movement of the 1980s, Burman remains one of the first British Asian female artists to have a monograph written about her work; Lynda Nead's ''Chila Kumari Burman: Beyond Two Cultures'' (1995).
In 2018, she received an honorary doctorate from
University of the Arts London
University of the Arts London is a collegiate university in London, England, specialising in arts, design, fashion and the performing arts. It is a federation of six arts colleges: Camberwell College of Arts, Central Saint Martins, Chelsea Coll ...
for her impact and recognised legacy as an international artist. In 2020 she was invited into the
Art Workers' Guild
The Art Workers' Guild is an organisation established in 1884 by a group of British painters, sculptors, architects, and designers associated with the ideas of William Morris and the Arts and Crafts movement. The guild promoted the 'unity of a ...
as a Brother and in 2022, Burman was appointed a
Member of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(MBE) in the
Queen's Birthday Honours
The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning British monarch's official birthday by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are present ...
for services to visual art.
Early life
Born in
Bootle
Bootle (pronounced ) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England, which had a population of 51,394 in 2011; the wider Bootle (UK Parliament constituency), Parliamentary constituency had a population of 98,449.
Histo ...
, near
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
, England, to Hindu Punjabi parents, Burman attended the Southport College of Art,
Leeds Polytechnic
Leeds Beckett University (LBU), formerly known as Leeds Metropolitan University (LMU) and before that as Leeds Polytechnic, is a public university in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It has campuses in the city centre and Headingley. The unive ...
and the
Slade School of Fine Art
The UCL Slade School of Fine Art (informally The Slade) is the art school of University College London (UCL) and is based in London, England. It has been ranked as the UK's top art and design educational institution. The school is organised as ...
For over four decades, Burman's practice has been at the intersection of
feminism
Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
representation
Representation may refer to:
Law and politics
*Representation (politics), political activities undertaken by elected representatives, as well as other theories
** Representative democracy, type of democracy in which elected officials represent a ...
. A key figure in the British Black Arts movement in the 1980s, Burman has remained rooted in her understanding of the diverse nature of culture. Continually seeking to break stereotypes and emancipate the image of women, she often uses self-portraiture as a tool of empowerment and self-determination.
In the 1980s, her work was shown in a number of seminal group shows including ''Four Indian Women Artists'' ( UK Artists Gallery, 1982); ''
Black Women Time Now
''Black Women Time Now'' was a 1983 art exhibition at the Battersea Arts Centre in London, featuring the work of fifteen artists announcing themselves as Black Women.
The exhibition, curated by Lubaina Himid, was funded by the GLC. The participa ...
'' (
Battersea Arts Centre
The Battersea Arts Centre ("BAC") is a performance space specialising in theatre productions. Located near Clapham Junction railway station in Battersea, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, it was formerly Battersea Town Hall. It is a Grade ...
, London, 1983); ''The Thin Black Line'' ( ICA, London, 1985); ''Black Art: New Directions'' ( Stoke on Trent Museum and Art Gallery, 1989) and the feminist exhibition ''Along the Lines of Resistance'' (
Rochdale Art Gallery
Touchstones Rochdale is an art gallery, museum, local studies centre, visitor information centre and café forming part of the Central Library, Museum and Art Gallery in Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England. It is a Grade II listed building.
...
and touring, 1989).
In the 1990s and 2000s, Burman's works more explicitly explored her family history, specifically her father's work as an ice-cream van man in Bootle (in her exhibitions ''Candy-Pop & Juicy Lucy'', Stephen Lawrence Gallery,
University of Greenwich
The University of Greenwich is a public university located in London and Kent, United Kingdom. Previous names include Woolwich Polytechnic and Thames Polytechnic.
The university's main campus is at the Old Royal Naval College, which along with it ...
Studio Museum
The Studio Museum in Harlem is an American art museum devoted to the work of artists of African descent. The museum's galleries are currently closed in preparation for a building project that will replace the current building, located at 144 W ...
, Harlem and Bronx Museum, New York, 1997); ''Genders and Nations'' (with Shirin Neshat;
Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art
The Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art ("The Johnson Museum") is an art museum located on the northwest corner of the Arts Quad on the main campus of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Its collection includes two windows from Frank Lloyd W ...
Huddersfield Art Gallery
The Huddersfield Art Gallery is an art gallery in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, northern England. It is currently owned and operated by Kirklees Council.
History
The building was built in 1937 and opened as a library and art gallery in 1940 ...
Watermans Arts Centre
Watermans Art Centre is a combined arts centre. It is located in Brentford, England alongside the banks of the River Thames overlooking Kew Gardens in West London, England.
It includes a 239-seat theatre, a 125-seat cinema two galleries and two ...
, London. From the 2000s, her works were frequently shown internationally with notable group shows including ''South Asian Women of the Diaspora'' ( Queens Library, New York, 2001) and ''Text and Subtext'' ( Earl-Lu Gallery, Lasalle-SIA University, Singapore, 2000) toured to Ivan Dougherty Gallery, Sydney, Australia, in 2000 and Ostiasiataka Museet (Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities) Stockholm, in 2001, Sternersenmuseet, Oslo, Norway, and Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Taiwan; X-ray Art Centre (Rui Wen Hua Yi Shu Zhong Xin), Beijing, China, in 2002 (exhibition catalogue).
In 2018, Burman's survey show ''Tales of Valiant Queens'' was displayed at
Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art
MIMA, or Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art, is a contemporary art gallery based in the centre of Middlesbrough, England. The gallery was formally launched on Sunday 27 January 2007; since 2014 it has been part of Teesside University.
His ...
. Bringing together works made between the 1970s up to 2018. The show focused on themes of female empowerment, social and political activism, folk traditions and colonial legacy. The show included many iconic pieces alongside newer works. The show was reviewed as one that showed "how the race, gender and class barriers the Burman family encountered formed the political dynamism of her work".
In 2020, Burman was selected as the fourth artist to complete the Tate Britain Winter Commission. The resulting hugely popular installatio ''Remembering A Brave New World'' addressed the colonial history of Tate Britain and its Eurocentric position. Adorning the gallery façade with references to Indian mythology, popular culture, female empowerment, political activism and colonial legacy. It exposed a need for better informed conversations, and more effective strategies for tackling racism in the art world and wider society. Burman has since gone on to complete high profile light installation project ''Do you see words in rainbows'' for Covent Garden’s historic market stall building ''Liverpool love of my life'' for the Liverpool Town Hall an ''Blackpool light of my life'' for Blackpool’s Grade II listed Grundy Art Gallery. Burman has also featured in Sky Arts documentary specia ''Statues Redressed'' and BBC2 documentar ''Art That Made Us'' And has completed a number of notable commission pieces for brands including Netflix’s White Tiger campaign and Byredo’s new fragrance Mumbai Noise.
Writing and publications
Alongside visual arts, Burman has written extensively on feminism, race, art and activism. In 1987, she wrote "There have always been Great Blackwomen Artists", exploring the situation of black women artists in relation to Linda Nochlin's 1971 essay "Why have there been no Great Women Artists?" (first published in ''Women Artists Slide Library Journal'' no. 15 (February 1987), and then in
Hilary Robinson
Hilary Robinson is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera '' Neighbours'', played by Anne Scott-Pendlebury. The character first appeared on-screen during the episode broadcast on 25 June 1987. Hilary departed the show on 28 February ...
(ed.), ''Visibly Female'' (London: Camden Press, 1987); also reproduced in Collective Black Women Writers, ''Charting the Journey: An Anthology on Black and Third World Writers'' (London: Sheba Publishers).
Her work appeared on the bookjacket of
Meera Syal
Meera Syal FRSL (born Feroza Syal; 27 June 1961) is a English comedian, writer, playwright, singer, journalist and actress. She rose to prominence as one of the team that created '' Goodness Gracious Me'' and portraying Sanjeev's grandmother, ...
's two novels on first publication: ''
Anita and Me
''Anita and Me'' is Meera Syal's debut novel, and was first published in 1996. It is a semi-autobiographical novel, based on Syal's childhood in the mining village of Essington, Staffordshire, which won the Betty Trask Award.
The story revolves ...
'' (Doubleday/Transworld, 1996); ''
Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee
''Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee'' is a three-part BBC television miniseries from 2005, adapted from Meera Syal's 1999 novel of the same name.
Plot
Childhood friends Tania (Laila Rouass), Sunita (Meera Syal) and Chila (Ayesha Dharker), now in their ...
'' (Doubleday/Transworld, 1999), as well as on the covers of James Proctor (ed.), ''Writing Black Britain, 1948–1998'' (Manchester University Press, 2001); Roger Bromley (ed.), ''Narratives for a New Belonging: Diasporic Cultural Fictions'' (Edinburgh University Press, 2000); and Peter Childs and Patrick Williams, ''An Introduction to
Post-Colonial Theory
Postcolonialism is the critical academic study of the cultural, political and economic legacy of colonialism and imperialism, focusing on the impact of human control and exploitation of colonized people and their lands. More specifically, it is a ...
Margaret Busby
Margaret Yvonne Busby, , Hon. FRSL (born 1944), also known as Nana Akua Ackon, is a Ghanaian-born publisher, editor, writer and broadcaster, resident in the UK. She was Britain's youngest and first black female book publisherJazzmine Breary"Let' ...
.
Selected writings
*2000 "Storm in a D-Cup" Artists Newsletter
*1999: Artist's statements in Frances Borzello, ''Women and Self Portraiture'' (Thames and Hudson)
**Artist's Statement in "West Coast Line Here and There Between South Asia's", ''New Writing from Canada and India'', nos. 26 and 27
**"Crossing Cultures", artist's statement in "KHOJ International Workshops", ''Artists Newsletter Magazine'', January
*1998: "Objects of Désireé", Artists Pages with Lucretia Knapp '' n.paradoxa: international feminist art journal'', Vol. 1, January
**Artist's statement in Sue Golding, ''Eight Technologies of Otherness'' (London: Routledge)
*1995: "Automatic Rap", in
Catherine Ugwu
Catherine Oliaku Ugwu (born 1964) is a British executive producer, artistic director, and consultant working in large-scale ceremonies and events, including for the Summer and Winter Olympics, the Summer Paralympics, the Asian, European, Islamic ...
(ed.), ''Let's Get It On: The Politics of Black Performance'' (London: ICA, and Seattle: Bay Press), p. 113
**"Right to Hope", in ''One World Art'' (UNESCO)
*1993: "Enough is Enough", ''Feminist Art News'', Vol. 4, No. 5
*1992: "Power to the People: Fear of a Black Community", ''Feminist Art News'', Vol. 3, no.9
**"Ask How I feel/ Automatic Rap/ My New Work", ''
Third Text
''Third Text'' is a leading peer-reviewed academic journal covering art in a global context. After founder and editor Rasheed Araeen's earlier art magazine ''Black Phoenix'', which started in 1978 and published only three issues, ''Third Text'' ...
'', No. 19, Summer
*1991: "Ask How I Feel", ''Feminist Arts News'', Vol. 3, No. 6 (also guest editor for this issue on "Working Class Women Artists")
**"Power to the people: fear of a black community", ''Feminist Arts News'', vol. 3, no. 9, pp. 14–15
*1990: "Talking in Tongues", in
Maud Sulter
Maud Sulter (19 September 1960 – 27 February 2008) was a Scottish contemporary fine artist, photographer, writer, educator, feminist, cultural historian, and curator of Ghanaian heritage. She began her career as a writer and poet, becoming a v ...
(ed.), ''Passion: Discourses on Black Women's Creativity'' (Hebden Bridge: Urban Fox Press)
**"Mash it up", in
Rozsika Parker
Rozsika Parker (27 December 1945 – 5 November 2010) was a British psychotherapist, art historian and writer and a feminist.
Biography
Parker was born in London and spent her early years in Oxford, studying at Wychwood School.
Between the ye ...
and Griselda Pollock, ''Framing Feminism: Art and the Women's Movement, 1970-1985'' (London: Pandora Press)
*2022: Bernardine Evaristo, "They are totally smashing it!’ Bernardine Evaristo on the artistic triumph of older Black women," ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', 28 April 2022
*2020: Louisa Buck, "Blinged-up but razor-sharp", interview, ''The Art Newspaper'', 16 November 2020
*2020: Alice Corriea, "Picturing Resistance and Resilience: South Asian Identities in the Work of Chila Kumari Burman", Visual Culture in Britain, 21 February 2020
*2012: Rina Arya, "Chila Kumari Burman: Shakti, Sexuality and Bindis," KT press, London, 2012
* 2012: Kahu Kochar, "Challenging stereotypes", interview with C. K. Burman, ''Platform'' magazine review, 27 February 2012
**Leslie Goodwin, "Brilliant portrait of artist", ''
Leicester Mercury
The ''Leicester Mercury'' is a British regional newspaper for the city of Leicester and the neighbouring counties of Leicestershire and Rutland. The paper began in the 19th century as the ''Leicester Daily Mercury'' and later changed to its pre ...
'', 8 March 2012, p. 11
**Drawing paper number #6 (Tate Liverpool) in conjunction with the Liverpool biennale 2012, co-curated by Mike Carney, Jon Barraclough, Gavin Delahunty
* 2011: Cheah Ui–Hoon, "Piecing together the Fragments", ''Singapore Business Times'', 29 August 2011
**Ryan, "In the Mix", ''Indian Express'', 20 March 2011
**"Exotic Edge", Blindspot exhibition, ''Home'' (Hong Kong), December, p. 47
**Review of Blindspot exhibition, ''Ming Pao Weekly'' (Hong Kong), 3 December 2011, p. 119
*2010:
Richard Appignanesi
Richard Appignanesi (born December 20, 1940) is a Canadian writer and editor. He was the originating editor of the internationally successful illustrated '' For Beginners'' book series (since 1991 called the '' Introducing...'' series), as well ...
(ed.), ''Beyond Cultural Diversity: The Case for Creativity'' (Third Text)
**''Guardian online'', Feminist postcard art auction at the Aubin Gallery, London, October
**Coline Milliard, "A Missing History: The Other Story revisited", '' Art Monthly'', no. 339, pp. 30–31
*2009:
Katy Deepwell
Katy Deepwell is a feminist art critic and academic, based in London. She is the founder and editor of ''n.paradoxa: international feminist art journal'', published 1998-2017, in 40 volumes by KT press. She founded KT press as a feminist not-f ...
, "Feminist art practice rewind, remix, and pump up volume", Axis: Curated Collections, 29 July 2009
**"Interview with Chila Burman", Space Studios online, 1 November
*2007: "Close-up: Interview with Imogen Fox", ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', 9 June 2007
**Barbara Chandler, "Indian summer in the city", ''
Evening Standard
The ''Evening Standard'', formerly ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), also known as the ''London Evening Standard'', is a local free daily newspaper in London, England, published Monday to Friday in tabloid format.
In October 2009, after be ...
'' (London), 8 August 2007, p. 1
**
Hannah Pool
Hannah Azieb Pool (born 1974) is a British–Eritrean writer and journalist. She was born near the town of Keren in Eritrea during the war for independence from Ethiopia. She is a former staff writer for ''The Guardian'' newspaper, and writes ...
, "Change your mind: When it comes to creativity there really are no limits: The artist: Chila Kumari Burman", ''The Guardian'' (London), 2 June 2007, p. 7
**
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...
Libby Purvis
Clive Gladstone Robertson (born 17 December 1965) is an English actor perhaps best known for his roles on the soap opera '' Sunset Beach'', the Canadian science fiction series ''Starhunter'', and the 2010 science fiction computer game '' Darks ...
Nikki Bedi
Nikhila Bedi (; '' née'' Moolgaoker; 9 September 1966) is a British television and radio presenter, born to an Indian father of Maharashtrian origin and an English mother. Married to Kabir Bedi from 1992 to 2005, she retained her married name ...
*2006: Review of ''Candy Pop and Juicy Lucy'' in ''
Time Out
Time-out, Time Out, or timeout may refer to:
Time
* Time-out (sport), in various sports, a break in play, called by a team
* Television timeout, a break in sporting action so that a commercial break may be taken
* Timeout (computing), an enginee ...
''
**Stephen Pettifor, "The layering of self", ''Asian Art News'', vol. 16, no. 6, pp. 78–81
**Richard Noyce, ''Printmaking at the Edge'' (London: A and C Black)
*2005: BBC2, ''
Desi DNA
''Desi DNA'' was a British television show on the BBC covering ''Desi'' (North Indian) art, culture and entertainment that launched in 2003.
In 2004 ''Desi DNA'' received the Best Lifestyle Programme award from the Royal Television Society.
The ...
'' TV Arts programme
*2004: Amit Roy, "Review", ''Calcutta and Bombay Times''
**"Mind, Body, Spirit", ''
British Medical Journal
''The BMJ'' is a weekly peer-reviewed medical trade journal, published by the trade union the British Medical Association (BMA). ''The BMJ'' has editorial freedom from the BMA. It is one of the world's oldest general medical journals. Origi ...
''
**Amit Roy, "Ice-Cream Van Girl Cometh", ''Eastern Eye and Daily Telegraph''
**Ali Hussein, "Dazzling", ''
Times of India
''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English language, English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, t ...
The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' (London), 2 November 2004, p. 16.
**
Rasheed Araeen
Rasheed Araeen ( ur, رشید آرائیں; born 1935) is a Karachi born, London-based conceptual artist, sculptor, painter, writer, and curator. He graduated in civil engineering from the NED University of Engineering and Technology in 1962, an ...
, "The success and the failure of Black Art", ''Third Text'' (2004)
* 2003: "Interview with Nancy Hynes", '' Atlántica'' 35
**
Yasmin Alibhai-Brown
Yasmin Alibhai-Brown (''née'' Damji; born 10 December 1949) is a British journalist and author, who describes herself as "a leftie liberal, anti-racist, feminist, Muslim...person". A regular columnist for the I (newspaper), ''i '' newspaper a ...
, "Our multicultural society is transforming Britart", ''
The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'' (London), 17 March 2003, p. 15
**BBC Radio 4, New BRIT Series, interview with Yasmin Alibhai-Brown
* 2002: John Cornall, "Fashioning lessons out of art; Stitched Up", Leamington Art Gallery & Museum, Royal Pump Rooms, ''
Birmingham Post
The ''Birmingham Post'' is a weekly printed newspaper based in Birmingham, England, with a circulation of 2,545 and distribution throughout the West Midlands. First published under the name the ''Birmingham Daily Post'' in 1857, it has had a s ...
Mark Sealy
Mark may refer to:
Currency
* Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina
* East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic
* Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927
* Finn ...
, ''Different'', Phaidon
**LXE 9 – "Art and Light on Homerton High Street"
**Massimo Tommaso Mazza, 1st Valencia Biennial, Video Showroom,
**Christina Kasrlstam, "Text + Subtext", ''Stockholm Times'', 20–25 October
**Franklin Sirmins, ''New York Time Out'', 7 February
**"Flirt", "Storm in a D-Cup", Admit 1 Gallery, Art in Review, by
Holland Cotter
Holland Cotter is an art critic with ''The New York Times''. In 2009, he won the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.
Life and work
Cotter was born in Connecticut and grew up in Boston, Massachusetts. He earned his A.B. from Harvard College in 1970, wh ...
, ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', 9 February
**S. Valdez, "Chila Kumari Burman at Admit One", ''Art in America'', vol. 89, no. 10, pp. 169–169
**Victoria Lu, "Text + Subtext", ''Artists Magazine'', Singapore
**
Meena Alexander
Meena Alexander (17 February 1951 – 21 November 2018) was an Indian American poet, scholar, and writer. Born in Allahabad, India, and raised in India and Sudan, Alexander later lived and worked in New York City, where she was a Distinguished P ...
, "Post-Colonial Theatre of Sense: The Art of Chila Kumari Burman", ''n.paradoxa: international feminist art journal'', issue 14 February, pp. 4–13
*2000: ''Wish You Were Here'': Scottish Multicultural Anthology, Scottish National Portrait Gallery, Pocket Books Publication
**Ann Donald, "A fresh look at the writer". Review of ''Wish You were Here'', ''The Herald'' (Glasgow), 18 September 2000, p. 12
**En Young Ahn, "Text + Subtext Exhibition, Lasalle-Sia", ''Art Monthly Australia''
**Rachel Jacques, "Hello Girls", ''
Wasafiri
''Wasafiri'' is a quarterly British literary magazine covering international contemporary writing. Founded in 1984, the magazine derives its name from a Swahili word meaning "travellers" that is etymologically linked with the Arabic word "safari" ...
'', vol. 16, no. 32, Autumn 2000, pp. 25–26
**Rachel Jacques, "The Wonder of the Bra", ''Singapore Arts Magazine''
**BBC Radio 4, ''
Woman's Hour
''Woman's Hour'' is a radio magazine programme broadcast in the United Kingdom on the BBC Light Programme, BBC Radio 2, and later BBC Radio 4. It has been on the air since 1946.
History
Created by Norman Collins and originally presented by A ...
'', interview with Jenni Murray (13 September)
*1999: Martin Longley, "Sisters doing it for a chosen few: Sister India", Wolverhampton Wulfrun Hall, ''Birmingham Post'', 19 October 1999, p. 15
**''Eastern Mix'' (Carlton TV / Central TV programme), includes an interview with Chila Kumari Burman
*1998: Lavini Melwani, review of ''Transforming the Crown'' exhibition, ''American Revisions'' (New York)
**Deirdre Hanna, "Salvation Artists Escape Tourist Trap", ''XTARI'', No. 357 (Toronto)
**Namiti Bhandare, "Bohemian Rhapsody", ''New Delhi Times'' (New Delhi), No. 24
**Anshul Avijit, "Fun and Vision", ''Hindustan Times'' (New Delhi), 28 November
**Kum Kum Dasgupta, "Khoj Artists of the World Unite", ''Asian Age'' (New Delhi)
**Alka Pande, "Artlinei", ''The Indian Express'', 21 November, Chundigarh
**Geeta Sharma, "The Search Within", ''The Telegraph Calcutta Weekend'', 28 November, Calcutta
**Nilanjana S. Roy, "The Miracle at Muldinager", ''New Delhi Times'', 21 November
**Frances Borzello (ed), ''Seeing Ourselves: Women's Self-portraits'', Thames & Hudson
*1997: John Holt, "Chila Kumari Burman: A Martial Artist Beyond Two Cultures", ''Third Text'' no. 41, Winter 1997/98, pp. 96–8
**Holland Cotter review of ''Out of India'' at the Queens Museum, ''The New York Times'', 26 December
**Sonali Fernando, "Indian Women Photographers", ''Photographers International'', No. 35, SE Asia
**Balraj Khanna, "Review of Indian Women Photographers", ''Artists and Illustrators'' (1997)
**Interview in TV programme by Stuart Hall on Black British Photography (Channel 4)
*1996: Marsha Meskimmon, ''The Art of Reflection: Women Artists’ Self- Portraiture in the Twentieth Century'', Scarlet Press, London & New York
**Iain Gale/Rupert Goodwins/Sarah Hemming Julian May/Steven Poole/Ian Shuttleworth, "Review of Ice-Cream and Magic II", ''The Independent'' (London), 13 January 1996: 2, 13 January 1995: 2.
*1995: Tanya Guha, '"Camerawork - Chila Kumari Burman", ''Time Out'', 27 September 1995
**Channel 4, ''I'M BRITISH BUT'' by
Pratibha Parmar
Pratibha Parmar is a British writer and filmmaker. She has made feminist documentaries such as '' Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth'' and ''My Name is Andrea'' about Andrea Dworkin.
Early life
Parmar was born in Nairobi, Kenya to Indian parents and ...
, TV programme interview
*1994: Review of ''Portrait of My Mother'', ''The Times'', 15 October, London
**"Chila Kumari Burman", ''Versus'' (1994)
*1993: Shirini Sabratham, review of ''Transition of Riches'', ''The Observer'' (London), 20 December
**Allan de Souza, review of ''Confrontations'' exhibition Creative Camera, February
**Jacques Rangasamy, review of ''Confrontations'' exhibition, ''Third Text'', No 22
**Joseph Williams, "Colours Enter the Picture", ''The Times'', 25 August 1993
**Review of ''Transition of Riches'', ''Asian Times'', 27 November;
**Review of ''Transition of Riches'', ''The Birmingham Post'', 20 November
**Robert Clark, "South Asian Visual Arts Festival Birmingham", ''The Guardian'' (Manchester), 9 October 1993
** Keith Piper, "Separate spaces", ''Variant'' (1993)
*1992: Lynda Nead, ''The Female Nude: Art, Obscenity & Sexuality'', London: Routledge
**Tim Hilton, review of Radical Hair Gallery exhibition, ''The Guardian'', 25 July
**"Identikit, Profile on Chila Burman", ''Bazaar Magazine'' (London), no. 15
**Janice Cheddie, "Body Rites: the Self-Portraits of Chila Burman", ''Women's Art Magazine'' (London), no. 49
*1990: Hiroko Hagiwara, ''Black Women Artists Speak Out'' (PQ Books, Osaka, Japan, Japanese text)
**Nina Perez, Review of Horizon Gallery exhibition, ''Women's Art Magazine'', no. 36, and in ''Feminist Art News'' London, vol. 3, no. 6
*1989: Hiroko Hagiwara, ''Feminist Art News'', Vol. 3, No. 1 (London)
*1989: ''Four Indian Women Artists'' (BBC Pebble Mill, Birmingham), TV programme about Chila Kumari Burman
*1988: Andrew Hope, ''Race Today'', Vol. 18, No 2, London
**Chambers, E., & J. Lamba, ''The Artpack: a history of black artists in Britain'', Haringey Arts Council
**Owusu, Kwesi, Nadir Tharani,
Pratibha Parmar
Pratibha Parmar is a British writer and filmmaker. She has made feminist documentaries such as '' Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth'' and ''My Name is Andrea'' about Andrea Dworkin.
Early life
Parmar was born in Nairobi, Kenya to Indian parents and ...
, Jide Odusina, Keith Piper,
Donald Rodney
Donald Gladstone Rodney (18 May 1961 – 4 March 1998) was a British artist. He was a leading figure in Britain's BLK Art Group of the 1980s and became recognised as "one of the most innovative and versatile artists of his generation." Rodney's wo ...
,
David A. Bailey
David A. Bailey (born 1961 in London), is a British Afro-Caribbean curator, photographer, writer and cultural facilitator, living and working in London. Among his main concerns are the notions of diaspora and black representation in art.
Bio ...
,
Ruhi Hamid
Ruhi Hamid is a British filmmaker, born in Tanzania of Asian origin, who has made award-winning documentaries for the BBC, Channel 4, Al Jazeera International, and other UK, US and European broadcasters. Her films have covered international storie ...
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Armet Francis
Armet Francis (born 29 January 1945) is a Jamaican-born photographer and publisher who has lived in London since the 1950s. He has been documenting and chronicling the lives of people of the African diaspora for more than 40 years and his assignm ...
,
Pitika Ntuli
Pitika Ntuli (born 1942) is a South African sculptor, poet, writer, and academic who spent 32 years of his life in exile in Swaziland and the UK.
Biography
Pitika Ntuli was born in Springs, Gauteng, South Africa, and grew up in Witbank in Mpu ...
(eds), ''Storms of the Heart: An Anthology of Black Arts & Culture'' (Camden Press, 1988)
*1985:
Waldemar Januszczak
Waldemar Januszczak (born 12 January 1954) is an English art critic and television documentary producer and presenter. Formerly the art critic of ''The Guardian'', he took the same role at ''The Sunday Times'' in 1992, and has twice won the Cr ...
, "Anger At Hand", ''The Guardian'' (London), 29 June
**
, review of ''The Thin Black Line'', ''ArtRage'' (London), November
*1982: C. Collier, "Four Indian Women Artists: Bhajan Hunjan, Naomi Iny, Chila Kuman Burman, Vinodini Ebdon (Indian Artists UK Gallery, London: Exhibition Review)", ''Arts Review'' (UK), Vol. 34, No. 2 (15 January 1982), p. 18
National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to:
*National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra
*National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred
*National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C.
*National Portrait Gallery, London, with s ...
,
Tate Gallery
Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...
,
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...
,
Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust is a charitable foundation focused on health research based in London, in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1936 with legacies from the pharmaceutical magnate Henry Wellcome (founder of one of the predecessors of Glaxo ...
,
Science Museum
A science museum is a museum devoted primarily to science. Older science museums tended to concentrate on static displays of objects related to natural history, paleontology, geology, industry and industrial machinery, etc. Modern trends in mu ...
Sir Richard Branson
Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson (born 18 July 1950) is a British billionaire, entrepreneur, and business magnate. In the 1970s he founded the Virgin Group, which today controls more than 400 companies in various fields.
Branson expressed ...
Linda Goodman
Mary Alice Kemery, popularly known as Linda Goodman (April 9, 1925 – October 21, 1995), was a ''New York Times'' bestselling American astrologer and poet. She wrote the first astrology book to make the ''New York Times'' Best Seller list.
...
In 2012, she was artist-in-residence at ART CHENNAI and produced the exhibition ''pREpellers'', curated by Kavita Balakrishnan for Art Chennai, Art and Soul gallery. In 2011–12 her residency at the Poplar HARCA centre, London, concluded with a major solo exhibition in this local community centre. Her residency from February 2009 to March 2010 at the
University of East London
, mottoeng = Knowledge and the fulfilment of vows
, established = 1898 – West Ham Technical Institute1952 – West Ham College of Technology1970 – North East London Polytechnic1989 – Polytechnic of East London ...
, was the result of a Leverhulme Award. For three years, January 2006 to December 2009, she was artist-in-residence at
Villiers High School
Villiers High School is a co-educational 11–18 school and sixth form in the Southall area of the west London borough of Ealing. The school is situated in Boyd Avenue, in the heart of Southall. Aruna Sharma was appointed Headteacher in September ...
, Southall, London.
From January 2004 to the present day, she has been a Trustee at
Rich Mix
Rich Mix is a charity that offers cinema and cross-arts centre that is located in the East End of London, located in Shoreditch in the Borough of Tower Hamlets, East London, England. Once a vast leather factory, 62,000-square-foot building was t ...
, London (and was Vice-Chair, 2008–2010). In 1986, she took part in producing The Roundhouse Mural Project, Camden, London and in 1985 produced The Southall Black Resistance Mural, in collaboration with Keith Piper.
Burman was appointed
Member of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(MBE) in the
2022 Birthday Honours
The 2022 Queen's Birthday Honours are appointments by some of the 15 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as par ...
for services to visual art, particularly during the
Covid-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
.
Exhibitions
Selected solo exhibitions and commissions:
*2022: ''Neon Drama and Pearl Drops'', Mansard Gallery, Heal's, Tottenham Court Road
*2021: ''Blackpool light of my life'', Grundy Gallery, Blackpool
*2021: ''Do you see words in rainbows'', Covent Garden West Piazza (Commission)
*2020: ''White Tiger Promo Car'', Netflix (Commission)
*2020: ''Remembering a brave new world'', Tate Britain, London
*2018: ''Tales of Valliant Queens'', Middlesbrough Museum of Modern Arts
*2017: ''Illuminating India'', Science Museum
*2017: ''Dada And The Punjabi Princess'', Attenborough Centre, Leicester
*2017: ''Portrait in Sugar'', MAK Gallery, London
*2017: ''Beyond Pop'', Wolverhampton Art Gallery, Wolverhampton
*2016: ''Absolute!'', Grace Belgravia, London
*2015: ''MAJAJINI'', RichMix, London
*2015: ''My Rangila Merry-go-round'', Attenborough Arts Centre, Leicester
*2014: ''THIS IS NOT ME'', Cookhouse Gallery, London
*2013: ''GENDER MATTERS'', Brunei Gallery, SOAS, London
*2011: ''Fragments of My Imagination'', Paradox Gallery, Singapore, toured to Blindspot Gallery, Hong Kong (exhibition catalogue)
*2010: Usurp Art Gallery & Studios'' Chila Burman’s Royal Academy Summer Exhibition –'' the first retrospective of Chila Burman, celebrating over 20 years of experimental and provocative art by one of the leading figures among UK Black and Asian artists
*2006: ''CANDY-POP & JUICY LUCY'', Stephen Lawrence Gallery,
University of Greenwich
The University of Greenwich is a public university located in London and Kent, United Kingdom. Previous names include Woolwich Polytechnic and Thames Polytechnic.
The university's main campus is at the Old Royal Naval College, which along with it ...
, London, UK (Iniva education project) (exhibition catalogue)
*2005–07: ''Damascus and Aleppo'', British Council touring exhibition
*2005: ''Chila Kumari Burman, 1995–present'', Waterside Arts Centre, Manchester, UK
*2004: ''Material Serendipity'', Plymouth Arts Centre (exhibition catalogue, Lynn Nead), toured to Cecil Higgins Gallery + Museum, Bedford, Nottingham: New Art Exchange (Apna Arts)
*2003: ''Points of View'', Hastings Museum & Art Gallery, Hastings, UK
*2003: ''Enchanting the Icon'', Sakshi Gallery. (exhibition catalogue, Marta Jakimowi)
*2002: ''Visual Autobiographies'',
Rich Mix
Rich Mix is a charity that offers cinema and cross-arts centre that is located in the East End of London, located in Shoreditch in the Borough of Tower Hamlets, East London, England. Once a vast leather factory, 62,000-square-foot building was t ...
, London (exhibition catalogue, Leverhulme artist-in-residence)
*1999: ''Hello Girls!'', Andrew Mummery Gallery, London, UK; Northbrook College of Technology; Bretton Hall,
Leeds University
, mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased
, established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds
, ...
, UK; Rochester Art Gallery, Rochester, UK
*1999: ''28 Positions in 34 Years'',
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...
, London, UK
*1998: ''Genders and Nations'' (with Shirin Neshat),
Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art
The Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art ("The Johnson Museum") is an art museum located on the northwest corner of the Arts Quad on the main campus of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Its collection includes two windows from Frank Lloyd W ...
,
Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...
, New York State (exhibition catalogue, Katy Deepwell)
*1997: ''Ice Cream and Magic'', The Pump House, People's History Museum, Manchester, UK
*1996: ''Between the Visible and Invisible'', National College of the Arts, Lahore, Pakistan
*1995: ''28 Positions in 34 Years'' (retrospective touring show), Camerawork, London, UK; Liverpool Bluecoat Gallery, Liverpool, UK; Oldham Art Gallery, Oldham, UK; Huddersfield Art Gallery, Huddersfield, UK; Street Level Gallery, Glasgow, UK; Cardiff Technical College, Cardiff, UK;
Watermans Arts Centre
Watermans Art Centre is a combined arts centre. It is located in Brentford, England alongside the banks of the River Thames overlooking Kew Gardens in West London, England.
It includes a 239-seat theatre, a 125-seat cinema two galleries and two ...
, London, UK
Group exhibitions:
*2022: ''Embodied Change'', Seattle Art Museum
*2022: ''Best of British'', Maddox Gallery, London
*2022: ''Hidden in Plain Site'', Stephen Lawrence Gallery, London
*2021: ''Hawala'', Paradise Row Gallery, London
*2021: ''60 Years of 60 Artists'', Tate Britain, London
*2018: ''The Past is Now and The British Empire'', Birmingham City Museum and Art Gallery,,
*2017: ''The Place is Here'', South London Art Gallery, London
*2015–16: '' No Colour Bar: Black British Art in Action 1960–1990'', Guildhall Art Gallery, London, UK"Female Art in Action" , The Radical Lives of Eric & Jessica Huntley website.
*2010: ''Seeing In Colour'', British Council Touring Show, Bottega-Gallery, Kiev, Ukraine; Centre for Urban History, Lviv, Ukraine; Academy of Arts, Tbilisi, Georgia; Academy of Fine Arts, Baku, Azerbaijan (exhibition catalogue)
*2010: ''ORIENTATIONS trajectories in Indian Art'', Foundation DE11 Lijnen, Oudenburg, Belgium (exhibition catalogue)
*2010: ''NINE: Her magic square'', The Viewing Room Gallery, Mumbai
*2009: ''British Subjects'',
Neuberger Museum of Art
Neuberger Museum of Art is located in Purchase, New York, United States. It is affiliated with Purchase College, part of the State University of New York system. It is the nation's tenth-largest university museum. The museum is one of 14 sites on ...
, New York, USA
*2007: ''Candy Culture/Confectionaries and Conurbations'', 100 Tonson Gallery, Bangkok
*2007: ''BECKS FUTURES'', Manchester, UK
*2006: ''Bollywood'', Scunthorpe Art Gallery, UK
*2005: ''Angels in the Studio. Slade Women Artists'',
Cecil Higgins Gallery
The Higgins Art Gallery & Museum is the principal art gallery and museum in Bedford, Bedfordshire, England, run by Bedford Borough Council and the trustees of the Cecil Higgins Collection.
Overview
The Higgins Art Gallery & Museum is in the Ca ...
, London, UK
*2003:''Women and Representation'', Sakshi Gallery, Bangalore, India
*2003: ''History Revision'', Plymouth Arts Centre, Plymouth, UK
*2002: ''Art of Nations'', Visual Arts Centre, North Lincolnshire, UK
*2002: ''A Thousand Ways of Being: Memory and Presence in the Arts of Diaspora'',
October Gallery
The October Gallery is an art gallery in central London, established in 1979.October GalleryQueens Library, New York, USA
*2000: ''Text and Subtext'', Earl-Lu Gallery, Lasalle-SIA University, Singapore; toured to Ivan Dougherty Gallery, Sydney, Australia, in 2000; Ostiasiataka Museet (Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities) Stockholm, Sweden in 2001; Sternersenmuseet, Oslo, Norway; Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Taiwan; and X-ray Art Centre (Rui Wen Hua Yi Shu Zhong Xin), Beijing, China in 2002. (exhibition catalogue)
*2000: ''A Grand Design'',
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...
, London, UK
*1999/2000: ''Sister India exhibition'', club night of Asian performers and artists, touring the UK
*1999: ''Crown Jewels'', Berlin, Germany; NGBK; Hamburg, Kampnagel, Germany (exhibition catalogue)
*1999: ''000 Zero Zero Zero'',
Whitechapel Art Gallery
The Whitechapel Gallery is a public art gallery in Whitechapel on the north side of Whitechapel High Street, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The original building, designed by Charles Harrison Townsend, opened in 1901 as one of the fir ...
, London, UK
*1998: ''Out of India'',
Queens Museum
The Queens Museum, formerly the Queens Museum of Art, is an art museum and educational center located in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in the borough of Queens in New York City, United States. The museum was founded in 1972, and has among its pe ...
, New York, USA
*1998: ''Art in Freedom'',
Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen
Municipal Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen () is an art museum in Rotterdam in the Netherlands. The name of the museum is derived from the two most important collectors of Frans Jacob Otto Boijmans and Daniël George van Beuningen. It is located at ...
, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
*1998: ''Revelations and Performance'', Centre for Contemporary Arts, Glasgow, UK
*1998: ''Tourists in our own Lands'', Gallery 44, Toronto, Canada (exhibition catalogue)
*1998: ''You and Me'', Walsall Museum and Art Gallery, Walsall, UK
*1998: ''North Current'', Halland Museum of Cultural History, Sweden and Gedok-Haus, Lubeck, Germany
*1997: ''Transforming the Crown'',
Studio Museum
The Studio Museum in Harlem is an American art museum devoted to the work of artists of African descent. The museum's galleries are currently closed in preparation for a building project that will replace the current building, located at 144 W ...
, Harlem and Bronx Museum, New York, USA
*1997: ''South Asian Artists'', Transcultural Gallery, Cartwright Hall, Bradford, UK
*1996: ''Portrait of our Mothers'', French Institute, London, UK, touring to Paris and Edinburgh (exhibition catalogue)
*1996: ''Uncommon Thread'', Civic Theatre, Johannesburg, South Africa
*1995: ''Under Different Skies'', Oksenhallen, Copenhagen, Denmark
*1995: ''Photo-Genetic, Review the Lens of History'', Street Level Gallery, Glasgow, UK
*1995: Cominex Camera, Withzenhaufen Gallery, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
*1995: Digital Equinox Custard Factory, Birmingham, UK
*1994: ''With Your Own Face On It'', Plymouth Arts Centre, Nottingham Museum and Art Gallery, Watermans Art Centre, London, UK (exhibition catalogue)
*1994: Fifth Havana Biennale, Havana, Cuba
*1994: ''Femme Noir 21st Century'', British Council, Manchester, UK
*1994: ''My Grandmother, My Mother, Myself'', Southampton City Art Gallery and Sandton Art Gallery, Johannesburg, South Africa (exhibition catalogue)
*1993: ''Transition of Riches'', Southampton City Art Gallery, Birmingham City Art Gallery and touring (exhibition catalogue)
*1992: ''Fine Material for a Dream'', Harris Museum and Art Gallery, Preston, UK, and touring (exhibition catalogue)
*1992: ''Confrontations'', Walsall Museum and Art Gallery, Walsall, UK (exhibition catalogue)
*1992: ''Back of Beyond/ Keeping Together'', The Pavilion, Leeds, UK (exhibition catalogue)
*1991: ''The Circular Dance'', Arnolfini, Bristol, UK, and touring (exhibition catalogue)
*1990: ''Let the Canvas Come to Life with Dark Faces'', Coventry City Art Gallery, UK, and touring
*1990: ''Heroes and Heroines'', Ikon Gallery, Birmingham, UK
*1990: ''Fabled Territories'', Leeds City Art Galleries and touring (exhibition catalogue)
*1989: ''Black Art: New Directions'', Stoke on Trent Museum and Art Gallery, UK
*1989: ''Along the Lines of Resistance'', Rochdale Art Gallery and touring (exhibition catalogue)
*1989: ''Animal Liberation: The Centre of the Circle'', Rochdale Art Gallery (exhibition catalogue)
*1988: ''The Medium and the Message, Five Women Printmakers'', Rochdale Art Gallery (exhibition catalogue)
*1988: ''Numaish Lalit Kala'', Bluecoat Gallery, Liverpool, UK (exhibition catalogue)
*1987: ''The Devils Feast'', Chelsea School of Art, London, UK
*1987: ''The Image Employed'', Cornerhouse, Manchester, UK (exhibition catalogue)
*1985: ''Artists Against Apartheid'', Royal Festival Hall, London, UK
*1985: ''The Thin Black Line'', ICA, London, UK
*1983: ''Indian Artists UK Festival of India'', The Barbican, London, UK
*1983: ''Black Women Time Now'', Battersea Arts Centre, London, UK
*1983: ''Creation for Liberation'', Brixton Art Gallery, London, UK