Sarindar Dhaliwal. The cartographer’s mistake: the Radcliffe Line. Chromira print, 107 x 107 cm.

Sarindar Dhaliwal: When I grow up I want to be a namer of paint colours

July 23, 2023 - July 14, 2024

Located on Level 1 in Gallery 131 and 132.

Admission is always FREE for AGO Members, AGO Annual Pass Holders & Indigenous Peoples. Learn more.

EXHIBITION OVERVIEW

Sarindar Dhaliwal: When I grow up I want to be a namer of paint colours exhibits more than 40 years of artmaking by the South Asian Canadian artist. Characterized by intense colour and compelling imagery, Dhaliwal’s art investigates memory, identity and migration. In this, her first AGO solo exhibition, the artist’s significant contribution to Canadian art will be illustrated by a selection of key works, including meticulously rendered drawings and mixed media works from the 1980s to the 2000s, alongside large-scale installations and recent photography. Curated by Renée van der Avoird, Associate Curator, Canadian Art, this exhibition highlights two recent acquisitions: Hey Hey Paula (1998) and the cartographer’s mistake: the Radcliffe Line (2012).

Please note the ceramic letters in the cartographer’s mistake: Medicine Hat’s Reprieve (version 2) are affixed with magnets. Please be advised that magnetic fields may affect the operation of certain pacemakers and some electronic devices.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Sarindar Dhaliwal was born in Punjab, India and moved with her family to England at the age of four where she grew up in Southall, London. At age fifteen, she migrated again with her family to Canada. She received a BA in Fine Art at Falmouth University, Cornwall in England (1978), then moved back to Canada where she still lives. She gained a MA from York University in 2003 and a PhD in Fine Arts from Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario. Dhaliwal has exhibited across Canada at institutions including the Art Gallery of Alberta; the Koffler Centre of the Arts, Toronto; the Agnes Etherington Art Centre, Kingston; and A Space Gallery, Toronto. An exhibition of her work, Record Keeping, toured England in 2004. Her work is in collections including the Walter Philips Gallery, Canada Council Art Bank, and the Art Gallery of Ontario. Dhaliwal was the 2012 recipient of the Canada Council International Residency at Artspace, Sydney, Australia.