Black Country Visual Arts

Punjabi Workers exhibition at Dudley archives cancelled due to Coronavirus 4th April - 1st June 2020

Anand Chhabra’s exhibtion for the Living Memory Project has unfortunately had to be cancelled but understandably so in the interest of public safety because of COVID-19, the virus that is shaking the world at the time of writing. The exhibtion was due to start from 4th April. Largely Anand was asked to be based in Dudley by Geoff Broadway director of the Living Memory project. Anand chose to work with students at Dudley College as well as conduct research on this area of interest surrounding Punjabi workers. We are looking to reschedule the exhibtion and base it in Walsall later in the summer, should the issues abate surrounding coronavirus. Here are some of the images that were due to go on display as part of Anand’s research into archives of early migrant Punjabi workers lives in the Black Country. All current portraits © Anand Chhabra

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'Moving to the City' - Exhibition launch & Artist Talk by Anand Chhabra Feb 7th 2020 - Arts Council England funded

‘Moving to the City’ has been a fantastic & enjoyable project to work for our Director Anand Chhabra. This project was commissioned by WAAS & funded by Arts Council England, Anand worked with various ethnic community groups in Worcester during 2018-19 co-creating work them for exhibition in Feb 2020. The work which comprised of various mosaic images & portraits (x4) 6ft x 4 ft portrait sculptures were then exhibited at The HIVE in Worcester where he held his residency during this time. The launch event was a great time celebrating the project with participants and colleagues from HIVe as well as arts organisations from the region. Special thanks to HIVE & WAAS colleagues in ensuring a great space for visitors to enjoy this work. Many positive words written about the artwork on the visitors book.

Participants and the regions artists and leaders came to here the talk about Anand Chhabra’s residency at the HIVE and supported by WAAS and Arts Council England.

Participants and the regions artists and leaders came to here the talk about Anand Chhabra’s residency at the HIVE and supported by WAAS and Arts Council England.

The event was officially opened by the City’s Mayor Allah Ditta on Feb 7th 2020. Over 13000 visitors saw the exhibition at the fantastic venue The HIVE in Worcester during the month.

The event was officially opened by the City’s Mayor Allah Ditta on Feb 7th 2020. Over 13000 visitors saw the exhibition at the fantastic venue The HIVE in Worcester during the month.

'Moving to the City' exhibtion invites have gone out!

Looking forward to the invite Invitation : Moving to the City

Exhibition Launch and Artist Talk

Please join us for the launch event of 'Moving to the City'. Artist Anand Chhabra will be exhibting a series of portrait diptychs commissioned by HIVE  Worcester and in partnership with Arts Council England. The artist will present a talk about his participatory arts practise amongst migrant communities who have settled within the City of Worcester. Anand's large scale mosaics have been co-created with individuals, school pupils and community groups through  
photography workshops during his residency.   

The exhibition will be officially launched by the City's Mayor after a short talk by the Artist in the Studio room. Light refereshments will be available.
TIME: 6.30p.m - 8.00p.m 11th Feb 2020
VENUE : The HIVE Sawmill Close. The Butts, Worcester WR1 3PD.

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Different and yet the Same Portrait Diptychs co-created by the local community & Artist © Anand Chhabra

Different and yet the Same Portrait Diptychs co-created by the local community & Artist © Anand Chhabra

National Trust Artists, Academics & Evaluation - Informing the Eastern Museum in a 'Year of listening'

Working as a Community Engagement Consultant for the National Trust property at Kedleston Hall in Derby for their Year of Listening, Anand has been working reaching out to communities and encouraging them to explore the collection as well as help inform Kedleston Hall as to how to share the future curation of the Museum. For many of these such communities living in Derby they have been invited to explore freely and feedback to the National Trust reasons to bring about the changes needed for the Eastern Museum and how they would like to see a future curation take shape with their own cultural reasons for doing so.

Anand thought it would be good idea to invite a group of artists and academics and University students from South Asian origin to also put inform the year of listening at Kedleston. Joining up with Derby Museums, various days were held to invite small groups with big minds to feedback to the team of staff at Kedleston.

We also met to evaluate how far Kedleston hall has moved in community relationships through Anand’s role (see last two photographs) and the good news has been its been an upwards trajectory with links from communities, stakeholders and organisations, artists and academics for the Trust to build on going forward!

Staff introduce artists, academics and staff into the Eastern Museum at Kedleston Hall

Staff introduce artists, academics and staff into the Eastern Museum at Kedleston Hall

Artists such as Joginder begin to discuss ways of curating the objects with a whole range of different groups who may visit

Artists such as Joginder begin to discuss ways of curating the objects with a whole range of different groups who may visit

Feeding back to the questions set up by Anand & staff at Kedleston Hall.

Feeding back to the questions set up by Anand & staff at Kedleston Hall.

Post it notes on thoughts to further questions displayed at the museum for feedback by Asian artists and academics.

Post it notes on thoughts to further questions displayed at the museum for feedback by Asian artists and academics.

Discussions continue after lunch about the changes that could be made by artists and academics to staff at Kedleston Hall.

Discussions continue after lunch about the changes that could be made by artists and academics to staff at Kedleston Hall.

A before graph charting Kedleston Hall’s community outreach connections before enlisting Anand Chhabra’s help.

A before graph charting Kedleston Hall’s community outreach connections before enlisting Anand Chhabra’s help.

An after graph of communities informed, consulted, engaged and partners raised during Anand’s role as CEC at Kedleston Hall.

An after graph of communities informed, consulted, engaged and partners raised during Anand’s role as CEC at Kedleston Hall.

Diwan Manna at Dudley College.

December was an intense month for projects as Anand arranged a number of things for Dudley College students to to be enlightened on, this event was arranged for Anand’s work on the Living Memory Project whereby Anand was commissioned to be situated in Dudley town. With Diwan Manna president of the Punjab Lalit Kala Akademie in Chandigarh, Punjab, India arriving in the UK. Anand asked if Diwan would visit & inspire the students by his own arts work as he is a collected photographic artist in some of the worlds major institutions. Diwan agreed & has been a great supporter and bent over backwards in getting the message about the archive in all the media across India and televised an interview with Parul an award wining journalist from the Punjab. That particular interview has been seen around the world by Punjabi’s internationally and even from people in Wolverhampton where it originated! There is not a media outlet that I didn’t conduct some sort of interview with through Diwan’s network right across North India in the short time I was there. BCVA is in much gratitude for what DIwan achieved on our behalf! Diwan spoke to a packed audience and articulated what it takes to be a artist through his amazing work, inspiring students to move on to higher education and think like an artist in order to develop their work further. Anand also arranged for Diwan to speak later in the week at University of Wolverhampton to Degree students there and managed to agree a future student exchange visits with the course leader.

Diwan Manna President of the major arts organisation in the Punjab inspires photo students about his own portfolio held in major collections around the world and how he aspires to create artistic work. © Anand Chhabra

Diwan Manna President of the major arts organisation in the Punjab inspires photo students about his own portfolio held in major collections around the world and how he aspires to create artistic work. © Anand Chhabra

Students listen intently and hang on every word from Diwan’s fantastic presentation. © Anand Chhabra

Students listen intently and hang on every word from Diwan’s fantastic presentation. © Anand Chhabra

Students engage with Diwan through a Q/A session at the end of Diwan’s presentation. © Anand Chhabra

Students engage with Diwan through a Q/A session at the end of Diwan’s presentation. © Anand Chhabra

Supnaa : Dreams of our Fathers shortlisted for Magnum Foundation prize & nominated for Prix Pictet 2019 (Arts Council England funded)

Supnaa : Dreams of our Fathers is a project of BCVA Director Anand Chhabra’s long term project on his parents migration to the Black Country. The project therefore connects to his parents generation of migrants who had hopes of a better life in another part of the Commonwealth. From 228 applications from 58 countries this project was shortlisted down to the final few by Magnum Foundation’s Photography in Collaboration : Migration & Religion prize. The project seek to communicate the truth of those formative years through portraits, ephemera and conceptual images when Punjabi’s arrived into the Black Country en masse in a very tumultuous time in the 1960s and relays there hopes, dreams as well as disappointments. The 60’s was a racially charged time with a generation that knew the horrors of partition back home and racial prejudice as sojourners abroad. This project seeks to look at the times nd seasons of their lives as a story that remains largely untold through fine art documentary photography. The project has also nominated for Prix Pictet in 2019.

Excerpts taken from Supnaa project showing the Dreams, hopes, faith and work life of early Punjabi migrants © Anand Chhabra

Excerpts taken from Supnaa project showing the Dreams, hopes, faith and work life of early Punjabi migrants © Anand Chhabra