'What's on Your Mind?' by Pragya Kumar

About

The Gerald Moore Gallery is delighted to present What's on Your Mind? by artist Pragya Kumar. Kumar will be presenting works created in her studio at Firepit Studios as well as collaboratively produced artworks made with other local artists and children from two local primary schools, Haimo Primary School and Wyborne Primary School.

What's on Your Mind?

Thursday 29th February to Saturday 6th April 2024

Private view: Thursday 29th February from 6 – 8pm.

Gerald Moore Gallery

Mottingham Lane (opposite Layzelle Walk), SE9 4RW London

Through her practice, Kumar attempts to create harmony with herself and peace with nature. Her making-process is gradual, and she incorporates natural, calm, peaceful materials to her artworks and digs deep into her creative roots. She is inspired by traditional visual art forms from India and her practice attempts to hold on to these fast-diminishing art forms, the legacy of storytelling, the bonds, and connections they have created for hundreds of years. She has been lately working collaboratively with few artists in India to expand her knowledge and incorporate them into her practice.

Understanding the importance of wellbeing, this exhibition is inspired by her own current mental health and the changes in her life, where she is trying to embrace her unpolished, raw, natural self, accept her insecurities and collect and carry herself out of fear. Being an active community-based participatory artist and given the current socio-economic environment, Kumar would like the local community to response towards their mental health and well-being through interactions with her art. She has engaged the local community in South East London in co-creating some of the pieces in the exhibition and have had a creative discussion about what’s currently on their mind and how they feel about it. Selected works in the exhibition are made possible through funding by Arts Council England.

As part of the exhibition programme, Kumar will be running free community arts and wellbeing workshops on certain Saturdays (2:30 - 3:30pm).  The exhibition is focused on arts, wellbeing and the use of sustainable materials in visual arts. The workshops are an insight to the themes of the exhibition and the artist and collaborators are inviting participants to explore some mindful practices related to these themes.

Please find the dates and workshops below:

2nd March 2024 - Warli art experience with Pragya Kumar

9th March 2024 - Sound bath by Fiona Gulec

16th & 23rd March 2024 - Arts & wellbeing workshop with Shermaine Slocombe

30th March 2024 - Weaving with Nicola Reid

The Gerald Moore Gallery is open to the public every Saturday 10am – 4pm or by appointment. To book your visit (not compulsory), please click HERE

Pragya Kumar is a London based, visual artist with over 12 years’ experience in participatory, community arts and wellbeing projects. As a freelance arts practitioner, she has worked with various organisations across the UK including Tate Britain and the BBC. For the past 10 years, she has successfully managed Eltham Arts, a local voluntary arts organisation which aims to connect arts to the community, where she has delivered high quality, immersive and engaging community-based arts projects, events, and festivals working collaboratively with schools, partner organisations and multiple stake holders. She works closely with schools in the area and is an active steering group member of the Greenwich Cultural Educational Partnership.