A special art exhibition has been launched at the Courtyard Gallery at Solihull’s Core after a group of mixed heritage artists from the West Midlands came together on the inaugural ‘Get Gallery Ready’ bootcamp at Solihull College & University Centre.
‘Belongings’ is a group exhibition featuring the work of the 20 artists who have recently formed the new collective MIA (Midlands International Artists) during their time on the inaugural bootcamp, funded by the West Midlands Combined Authority.
This diverse group of artists have come together to explore themes of belonging, identity, journey, heritage and multiculturalism for their first show, which will include paintings, photography, weaving, textiles and ceramics, alongside other mixed-media works.
The physical space of the home, as a space of belonging, is evoked in the paintings of Fiona Carr who layers images of floral wallpaper which seems to whisper past secrets about women’s lives in domestic spaces.
Wallpaper motifs continue in the digital collages of Sandra Palmer aka Brummy Artist, whose work allows her to frame, in empowering, vibrant and floral terms, multiple senses of self and a mixed heritage. As says: “My art is about me, and my sense of “belonging” to my West Indian, British, cultural and artist communities.”
Challenging notions that we only belong to one space, this show will celebrate layered stories memories and nostalgia, which are often held in physical belongings. Daya Bhatti, for instance, sews stories of her rich South Asian heritage into traditional garments. As she’s said:
“Being British Asian often means existing in the in-between, where belonging is layered and complex. My pieces embrace this fragmentation of identity using pattern, fabric, and symbolism to piece together a sense of self.”
A more emotional and cultural sense of belonging is embedded in the geometric paintings of Hasret Brown, whose patterned cosmos reflects her Turkish roots and influences, including centuries-old Islamic art and architecture.
Other artists have questioned the spaces from which they feel alienated. Combining text and image in her prints and ‘postcardia’ series, Editoriat questions where tourists may choose to sightsee, while highlighting the spaces that women often feel unsafe, particularly late at night. As she has commented:
“This exhibition is about all kinds of belongings. Sometimes that means feeling like you don’t belong – which is something I’ve explore in my work, disrupting those toxic media messages that make us feel ‘less than’. Sometimes it is a feeling of kinship that develops over time, and that’s how our art bootcamp has been. I think it is our diversity – of age, background and art practice – that has created a sense of connection and support from the start. It’s great to have art on the wall but we’ve also created a little family in the process and we all feel a bit less alone in our endeavours now. That’s what it’s all about.”
This exhibition is being curated by Birmingham-based art historian and author Ruth Millington, who says:
“I’m so excited for viewers to see this show, which will invite questions about the physical and emotional spaces where we can find a sense of self, value and belonging. It’s been an honour to work with this talented, committed and collaborative group of artists who prove that there is great power in collective endeavours and that the gallery itself can become an important home for artists.”
Having met through the ‘Get Gallery Ready’ bootcamp at Solihull College & University Centre, the artists committed to forming their own collective, which aims to provide a supportive, collaborative environment for them to develop practice in the multicultural region of the Midlands.
As artist Brian Prangle says: “This exhibition is such a great example of how a disparate group of artists under a sustained mentoring programme can quickly gel into a functioning creative collective”.
The 20 exhibiting artists are: Alice Alena Adamkova, Daya Batti, Hasret Brown, Leticia Campos, Fiona Carr, Sylwia Ciszewska-Peciak, Editoriat, Robbie Jeffcott, Joanna Grochat, Tara Harris, Prashant Kansara, Sarmite Lasmane, Irina Mackie, Anisa Mosaiebiniya, Sandra Palmer, Brian Prangle, Sophie Slade, Natasha Taheem, Faiqa Uppal and Suminder Virk .
The exhibition runs until June 7th.
