The Art Gallery of Burlington (AGB) has come out with a new series of exhibitions, the first of which will run until Nov. 2, 2025. The first Community Generator collection is a vivid platform to showcase local artists and works to spark conversation and inspire new perspectives.
The purpose of the Community Generator is to highlight community-based artists, groups, and collectives, expanding their reach by bringing their work to various spaces across the AGB for gallery-goers to enjoy.
In conversation with Suzanne Carte, the senior curator at the AGB, and Kamaldeep Kaur, a contributing artist to the Series 1 exhibition with her collection “She Walks Between the Moments,” we discuss the collection, the pieces, and what it means for the AGB’s future.
Kaur is one of the three artists showcased; her work is inspired by her own Indian heritage and Hindu mythology. She is also a part of the AGB residency program.
Answers have been edited for clarity and flow.
What was the idea behind this Community Generator series of exhibitions?
Carte: The reason why we started doing Community Generator was because we had these spaces within the gallery that we wanted to be able to bring to life. We are a public art gallery, we’re a visual space, [we] kind of have these cold corridors and meeting spaces…so I wanted to crack it open. We did that through a call, so we could also see and meet some individuals from the community who wanted to have an opportunity, because gallery spaces, as we know, are really hard to get into. That was the huge thing behind doing the Community Generator.
How did you choose the artists for the exhibition?
Carte: The selection is through the jury process of submissions, and our full team sat down for programming, our learning [team], our studios, and our curatorial team. We all sat down and reviewed all of the applicants, and then went through which ones rose to the top, and which ones we thought maybe weren’t the right opportunity or right time for them. Then we also started seeing where some of the artists could actually play off of one another, too — you want to come out of the gate with three really strong projects.
What experience do you hope people take away from this series?
Carte: Enjoy the moment, things will come like the happy times, sad times, everything will go. It’s just a part of life. Enjoy the presence of the loved ones, the presence of the surroundings that we have. In a world where there is not a lot of beauty right now and the override of pain and the override of grief, to come into that space and have a moment where you’re enveloped in beauty is powerful.
How do Kaur’s works reflect the broader vision and future direction of the Art Gallery of Burlington?
Carte: For me, I think that the work that Kamaldeep is doing and the way in which it’s presented within the space, just really talks about the history of production in Burlington. I think that is the future direction. It’s artists that are looking towards technique and tradition, but also exploring it in a brand new way. Through narrative, through the marriage of two different geographies being put together. I think that’s what we do, is that we have the intersections of art and craft, traditions, and technologies and stories, and the ways in which the stories are represented and told, and the vast amount of artists, creatives, and makers that we have in the region. I hope that when people come into this space, when they see the richness of Kamaldeep’s work, they understand the richness of possibilities within the space.
How is this collection inspiring you for the next one, or AGB’s future?
Carte: Artists set a bar that you run with. This shows us what’s possible in our space. We are artist-led. We learn from artists. Everything I know, I know from artists and artists’ work. I think that not only with this exhibition, but with having Kamaldeep here during the year, the artist in residence program, we have the opportunity to continue to push this forward, to meet new people, to build collaborations. I also feel like the work that we do at the gallery with artists is not mechanical. It’s not like you’re moving on to the next person, for lack of a better analogy, you’re building a family so that the teachings and the learnings with her work stay in the space, that they’re not forgotten, and that we build from that.
Kaur’s work is displayed in the community gallery and lounge at the AGB. The collection speaks to the universal human experiences of love and longing, as well as inner awakening, via portrayals of Radha, the Hindu goddess of love, compassion, and tenderness. Kaur blurs time and space, using modern techniques in traditional Indian miniature paintings, showing Radha in Kaur’s now-homeland, Canada.
In your collection, which painting felt the most personal?
Kaur: All of them are personal, but there is one about the girl, which is a journey inspired by me and my family visiting Tobermory, just sitting on a beach, relaxing. Everyone was quiet, there was a rock and water…I could remember how the breeze was flowing. I felt like I should draw this in my own style. This artwork was my first artwork, which is big for me.
What drew you to Radha as the protagonist for this series?
Kaur: The beginning of the series was with another series, which was an illusion of time. I started with the series where a girl is travelling in the past, in a fantasy world, where she is just finding herself in a different realm of life. Right now, she’s in Canada, enjoying nature, but also using the technique of Indian miniature painting and having that concept of Naika and Naik. Naika is a feminine figure, and Naik is a masculine one. It’s the chemistry between them, how she’s waiting for him, and then the conversation between them, their journey. Also, beautifying the feminine way of approach, I can make it in a more surrealistic world.
What aspects of Indian tradition do you feel are essential to preserve in your art when incorporating modern elements?
Kaur: The most important thing that I wanted to keep is the technique, like the old artisans, how the female figure is having the side position, which used to be in the Indian miniature paintings. Secondly, the mediums they were using, the natural pigments from minerals. There is a place in Rajasthan, I went there and I met the artisan, they have this tradition from generations of mixing the pigments, and you can see they are so enriched. I started using those pigments in a watercolour form and then using gouache, which is a new pigment for me. That is what I always wanted to carry with me.
What inspires you or turns you in different directions in your work?
Kaur: When I complete one artwork, my brain is blank. I need to go somewhere so that I can get inspiration. I listen to a lot of meditative music. I see a lot of things that give me calm. I also go and see other artists, what they are doing, and how their journey is going. I read about them. I see their work. But for me, that one moment needs to be captured. That’s difficult to do, to be honest, because I need to always be conscious about what I’m doing. That’s where I carry the moment. I try to get inspiration from nature, from what I’m seeing. I’m always learning.
For more information, visit the AGB website.
