T i for…

…totality and triumph. Triumph in the respect that one project is successfully (or just about) completed…I still have the evaluation phase to do for myself and the Arts Council England. Yesterday was the artists’ talk and closing reception for my exhibition \”home\” at the AirSpace Gallery in Stoke-on-Trent. There was a good turn out of 22 people to see myself, David Schischka-Thomas (Senior Curator from the New Art Exchange) and artists Chinmoyi Patel and Kashif Nadim Chaudry talk for about an hour and a half about the exhibition and it’s related themes. David chaired the informal discussion and due to his vast knowledge and interest with South Asian art and his curatorial experience, he quite fantastically continued dialogues and encouraged conversation with such fluidity. After introductions, as to why the exhibition and chosen artists, David related the discussion specifically to the artists’ practice and their development and influences. It was beautiful to hear about Nadim and Chin’s upbringings, family relationships and perceptions of their “home”. One of the closing questions David asked was what “home” meant to me. Considering the context and title of the exhibition you would have thought someone would have asked that by now but they hadn’t. It was strange…I’d attempted to establish what “home” meant to everyone else but never questioned it myself! After a little contemplation, considering everyone else’s responses…it’s “where I lay my head”, “my bed”, “where I have security”, “my children”, “where I hang my hat”…to me, as I had quite a nomadic upbringing, it is my friends and family…when I’m with them, I’m at home. I’m in their comfort and security and it doesn’t matter what walls or objects surround me…they are my home.

Many thanks to all those involved, including Andrew Branscombe and David Bethell, Directors of the AirSpace Gallery, for all their help. Special thanks also goes to RJW for his support and for taking photographs, thus being my paparazzi for the event. Some snaps from the event are below, credit to Richard Warren.

The end of the discussion became quite emotional due to the personal verbal exchanges we had shared. It was a really perfect end point to the show and I am so grateful to have worked with such wonderfully talented, modest, respectful and articulate artists. I wish them all well in their future projects and am excited about keeping track of their practice. Both Kashif Nadim Chaudry and Harminder Singh Judge have exhibitions opening at the New Art Exchange on 24th April 2010. The private view is on Friday 23rd April and I can’t wait to see the new works! Come along if you can.

Yesterday, I was a little emotional that the exhibition was over, as I believe it has marked a certain stage in my creative career. Many more of these projects to come…different types, different domains, different contexts, in and about different locations and countries. Where to next? Well, I think some events regarding my PhD research are in the pipeline…