A Joyous Thing with Maggots at the Centre
A solo exhibition by Hardeep Pandhal
26 September – 23 November 2014  
 
Asia Triennial Manchester 2014 Castlefield Gallery are to present artist Hardeep Pandhal’s first solo exhibition, A Joyous Thing with Maggots at the Centre.

It continues its 30 years of exhibiting early-career British artists in national or international contexts.

For Pandhal it is important to confront trauma with laughter, making work as visceral as it is satirical and often interrogating perceptions of British Asian identity with references to graffiti, psychoanalysis, modern British history, and popular culture. 

He draws on the conflicting experiences of others, often caught in situations of compromise, to create fictionalised characters and narratives, realised in spoof documentaries, illustrated CVs and handmade garments.

New work for this exhibition continues to explore the contradictions he encountered during his own up-bringing; drawing on personal memories to critique how processes of acculturation, or its lack, have impacted on post-colonial Britain. 

In the context of the ATM14 programme, with its theme of Conflict and Compassion and nationwide events marking the centenary of WW1, Pandhal’s work is a poignant consideration of how we might deal with regrettable past events, as individuals and as a society.
 
A Joyous Thing with Maggots at the Centre will also explore our relationship with role models and anti-heroes. 

Works  include a 3-metre blimp in the gallery’s double height space, as a proposal for a much larger public artwork inspired by a moment in Brian De Palma’s 1983 remake of the movie Scarface, and a knitted jumper referencing iconic images of Sikh martyrdom, made via conversations with his mother.

Born in Birmingham, Pandhal now lives and works in Glasgow, having graduated with an MFA from the Glasgow School of Art in 2013 with the support of a Leverhulme Scholarship award. He was selected for Bloomberg New Contemporaries (2013) and the Catlin Art Guide (2014). 
 
A new co-commissioned video work will also be launched simultaneously at Castlefield Gallery and online as part of a Full Circle Arts’ season of original artwork and writing that explores ideas around metamorphosis. digicommissions.co.uk


A Joyous Thing with Maggots at the Centre
Exhibition Dates: 26 September – 23 November 2014.
Venue: Castlefield Gallery, 2 Hewitt Street, Manchester, M15 4GB. 
Tel: 0161 832 8034.
www.castlefieldgallery.co.uk.
Opening Times: Wed to Sun 1pm – 6pm. 
Admission: FREE.  The gallery is fully accessible.