Chila Kumari Burman at OUTPUT in Liverpool

Sara Jaspan, Exhibitions Editor

Visit now

Chila Kumari Burman

6-30 August 2020

Always double check opening hours with the venue before making a special visit.

Chila Kumari Burman at OUTPUT in Liverpool
Chila Kumari Burman, 'Dada and The Punjabi Princess' (2017). Video still. Image courtesy of OUTPUT gallery
Book now

For its first exhibition post-lockdown, Liverpool-based OUTPUT gallery (run by Gabrielle de la Puente, one half of The White Pube) will reopen this August with three moving image works by Chila Kumari Singh Burman, including a new piece developed during quarantine in collaboration with Susanne Dietz. The exhibition comes ahead of her major Winter Commission to transform Tate Britain’s façade later this year, for which she plans to diverge from the usual Christmas theme and instead concentrate on Diwali – the Hindu festival of light and hope.

For anyone not familiar with Burman’s work, the first thing to expect from her show at OUTPUT is her signature use of saturated colour. The next is humour. Since the mid-1980s, Burman has made a name for herself working across print, painting, photography, film and installation to playfully satirise and critique identity-based stereotypes, particularly those that exist around Asian women and femininity. (The titles alone of the three pieces that will be on show – ‘Candy Pop and Juicy Lucy’ (2008), ‘Dada and The Punjabi Princess’ (2017) and ‘Armour’ (2020) – hint towards this.) She describes her work as the coming together of high art and popular culture, with a post-punk feel, citing ‘Bollywood, Dada and Surrealism, Hindu philosophy, Indian comics’ and her mum among her influences and employing an ‘aesthetics of collecting’ centred around bindis, hairpieces, cheap jewels and other ‘girly’ accessories.

Burman was born in 1957 in Bootle to parents who emigrated there from the Punjab region following partition. Childhood memories and her family heritage feature prominently in her work, using the private to address wider social, historical and political issues, particularly around gender, class and race. Ice cream is a reoccurring motif connected with her father who owned an ice cream van in Liverpool. Sewing and embroidery also often feature; her family came from the tailoring class in India, her mother used to sew, and her father was previously a tailor for Dunlop. Though she lives and works in London now, she remains in every way connected to her Liverpudlian/Punjabi roots.

As an artist whose work centres around questions of representation and posits the idea of multiple selfhoods over static or imposed identities, Burman’s work remains hyper-relevant to our current time. We’re especially looking forward to seeing her latest film, ‘Armour’, which was made during lockdown.

Note: As OUTPUT is mindful that some members of its usual audience will still be shielding, the gallery will be releasing a podcast series of interviews with solo exhibitors discussing their exhibition and wider art practice.

Where to go near Chila Kumari Burman at OUTPUT in Liverpool

Leeds
Gallery
The Sculpture Gallery

The Sculpture Gallery is an outstanding new gallery, of pure sculpture, showcasing the work, not only of the six owners but guests also.

A club bedroom at Malmaison Leeds
Leeds
Hotel
Malmaison Leeds

Malmaison Leeds is a historic and dramatic building, full of character and individual style. Beautifully refurbished quirky bedrooms with power showers, blackout curtains and great beds.

On The Wall is a funky independent shop that sells a wide range of creative and artistic items including, posters, art prints, canvases, greeting cards and merchandise/gifts. They also offer a bespoke framing and canvas printing service and a screen printed t- shirt service. If you are looking for something more unique and inspiring they also sell work by local artists.
Leeds
Shop
On The Wall

Bright, bold and full of character, On the Wall pairs expert framing with prints, posters and gifts inside Leeds Corn Exchange.

Leeds
Restaurant
Canned Heat

Canned Heat is an independent bottle-shop & bar in the heart of Chapeltown, Leeds. Born out of a passion for Music, Art and Community.

Chorlton
Restaurant
Yane

Friendly neighbourhood restaurant in Chorlton, specialising in authentic Japanese cuisine such as donburi, katsu kare and traditional pickles, made in-house.

Creatures Comedy Club
Manchester
Theatre
Creatures Comedy Club

Whether you’re a die-hard comedy fan or just after a spontaneous night out, there’s something here for everyone. Open 7 nights a week.

The Loft
Manchester
Music venue
The Loft

The Loft is an intimate, industrial-style club tucked away on the edge of Manchester city centre. Known for its impeccable sound system and low-key vibe.

Stables Tavern
City Centre
Restaurant
Stables Tavern

The Stables Tavern is an olde style pub in the St John’s neighbourhood of Manchester, where the Rovers Return once stood.

What's on: Exhibitions

In a large industrial space filled with dobby looms hangs a blood red textile piece infront of a sheer white backdrop.
Until
ExhibitionsLeeds
Loops at Sunny Bank Mills

‘Loops’ is a new collaborative exhibition of textiles at Sunny Bank Mills, connecting artists from across the Netherlands and Yorkshire.

Free entry

Culture Guides

Theatre in Manchester
Theatre in the North

Summer signals theatre festivals, world premieres and open-air spectacle - from MIF25 to comedy, outdoor circus and beyond, here’s what we’re looking forward to.

Cloudwater Production One
Tours and Activities in the North

Go forth with wild abandon to dance the pavements, dabble with the paint and down the pints in this month's tours and activities guide.

Star Nhà Ease
Cinema in the North

July's cinema highlights include spotlights on international cinema, a new cult classic, plus a visit from one of our favourite directors.

Harry Baker
Literature Events in the North

From environmental to experimental, our poetry and prose picks from around the North are focused on the unusual and the fun.

Exhibitions in the North

Captivating, urgent and intimate - we bring you our top exhibition picks, with even more art festivals, artist-led shows and new venues.

Helena Hauff
Music in the North

Shape-shifting bands, scorched-earth techno, and off-grid festivals. Our latest music picks catch the live scene at its most urgent, inventive and alive.