Online Residency 2021
Biography
Born in the city of Chandigarh, India, Parumveer Walia is a multidisciplinary artist and writer. His stumbling upon the arts came from his largely varied interests pertaining to language and literature, philosophy, performance, sustainability, and film, among others. Way back when, as a young student of the International Baccalaureate, he realized that the only field which will allow him to grow in an unlimited fashion, one where he can explore all his intellectual inclinations is the Arts. Its vastness seemed to cradle his own. Ever since an unwavering dedication to storytelling and vulnerable expression has grounded Walia and his artistic practice, which he will be developing as he pursues his BFA at Emily Carr University of Art and Design, Canada.
Work experience
Workshop Instructor,
ACG studios, Slough, U.K. (11/2020 – 01/2021)
Sole instructor and head of lecture and workshop on ‘Negative Photography: History and Contemporary applications’
Creative Director and Co-Founder
Filantropia, Chandigarh, India (06/2019- 09/2019)
Exhibitions, publications, and other features
Graduate Exhibition, ’10 Parts of Pain’ in Chandigarh, India (06/2018- 03/2020)
Graduate Exhibition, ’10 Parts of Pain’ permanently featured in the curated gallery of the InThinking Visual arts website.
Featured artist, ‘Gaslighting’ exhibition in Brighton, U.K. (11/2020- 01/2021)
Featured artist, ‘text me when you get home’ virtual and physical exhibit (TBA)
Photography series, ‘Please, Wake up Tomorrow’, received a special mention at the Ninth Sustainable Development Mountain Summit, hosted by Integrated Mountain Initiative India. (11/2020 – 12/2020)
Featured in the Artists Responding To zine, issue 2. London, U.K. (09/2020)
4 works featured permanently on the Artists Responding To online collection. (10/2020 – 11/2020)
Featured artist on the art platform, the MASS, Inhuman and Niche issues. (10/2020 – 11/2020)
Featured artist in ArtHole magazine, Issue 6. London, U.K. (10/2020 – 11/2020)
Featured in Penny thoughts, Issue 40 by Snitch Publishes.
Featured in Zine Without a Crown, Issue VII. Wroclaw, Poland (10/2020 – 11/2020)
Featured artist in Queer Death Zine, the premiere issue (12/2020 – 03/2021)
Featured artist in ChromaZone magazine, the premiere issue (11/2020 – 12/2020)
Research
Parallel investigation and analysis of Ai Weiwei’s ‘Hei Xie’ (2010), Karel Appel’s ‘People, Birds, and Sun’ (1954), and Rene Magritte’s ‘Jeune fille mangeant un oiseau – Le Plaisir’ (1927). (08/2018 – 03/2020)
Analytical comparative study of white asphalt surfaces and pavement watering as potential mitigation strategies for the Urban Heat Island Effect. (08/2018 – 04/2020)
Historical Investigation on the visual culture and the significance of the print media’s contribution to the American perception of the Soviet Union during the Second Red Scare (1947- 1957). (09/2018 – 04/2020)
Essay analyzing the symbolism and inter-textuality of poetry from the Indian Freedom Struggle. (12/2018 – 04/2020)
Artist statement
Taking stories, emotions and vulnerabilities tucked away in the self, my practice aims to bring these to light and hence unravel the self and its internality. My multidisciplinary work is driven by an emotionally charged process of mapping my internal landscape, one I share with the hopes of making visible the distorted yet undying connections we all hold in our co-existence as the human race. As a result, my making often synergizes unadulterated visualizations of vulnerabilities, hurt, trauma, and pain but only due to my belief that a coming-of-face with one’s concealed struggles serves as a navigational gateway to fuller, more real happiness, empathy, and peace.
In this manner, my working is two-pronged: highlighting the hurt we conceal to allow us to come to terms with our personal pain, but also transcend its confines to develop, what I term, a sense of ‘shared pain’. Here, I treat confronting, accepting, and sharing pain as a lesser taken, albeit necessary pathway to happiness. Since my works explore largely varying subject matter taken from my life and pain, I embrace a visual uniqueness with each. Hence, at first glance, these works may appear to be more distinct than visually alike. However, engaging in deeper looking reveals more implicit yet undeniable connections in the thematic material. Yet, my tendencies time and time again return to a certain visual style always utilizing humanistic and/or nature-based imagery. I am of the opinion the human stories I communicate are often best told only through the human form and likeness. Further, a fascination with the emotive power of the color red causes it to be one of the most significant hues in my color palette, becoming an embodiment of pain, suffering hurt, and blood. This accentuates the dark, cinematic, sombre, and trance-inducing mood of my installations and works.
In summary, often when such a large multiplicity of words and jargon fails to be communicative and understandable, I sum up my whole artistic motivations with the phrase, “show me your heart as I show you mine”.
Links
Website: https://parumveerwalia.pb.studio/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/parumveer.art/