Kaal : ਕਾਲ (punjabi) : noun : Time
Kaal: The Art of Time : An Art Show
Kaal is an immersive exploration of time, a concept that governs our lives yet often escapes our understanding. Through the eyes of multiple artists, this exhibition takes viewers on a journey through three formed views of time: the past, present, and future.
Kaal is a contemplation on how we perceive time, how it shapes us, and how, ultimately, we might free our minds from its constraints. Step through the doors and experience time as a physical, emotional, and spiritual force.
Venue and hours:
Upstairs, 1650 Dupont St, Toronto
October 17-23, 2024
Opening Night: Thursday, October 17, 6-9 PM
Weekday hours: 2-7 PM
Weekend hours: 12-7 PM
Show Map
Presenting Artists:
AMANDEEP GILL
BALJIT SINGH
GIZEM CANDAN
KIMA LENAGHAN
MISBAH AHMED
SHEVON J. LEWIS
VIKRAM SINGH
VIKRAM SRA
also featuring
SARDAR SINGH
From the Inner World:
Baljit says:
As a photographer, my work consistently leads me to explore the past, capture the present moments, and to think about preserving and archiving for future generations. It’s a cycle of nostalgia, documentation, and creation. And within these trips down to memory lane, it was hard not to think about the current and future state of Panjab. As I flipped through the pages of our family photo album, they were a reflection of the stories my parents would share and felt like a romanticized version of Panjab. A time when building towards the economic and societal development of the land filled each generation with pride. As long as there are children in Panjab, there is hope. But the truth is, Panjab looks very different today. The wave of shipping kids off to foreign countries took over. Advertisements spread from the city to the villages. IELTS centres in every corner. Governments limit resources and opportunities for the youth to grow, setting them up for failure. Families going into debt with visa agents that falsely promise them a better life. No matter when you leave the motherland, the longing of home will always remain. In the near future, morning fog will haunt the empty streets. The skeletons of the abandoned houses will serve as a reminder of pinds (villages) that were once filled with life and bounty. All that will remain are the shadows of what existed.
Shevon says:
Much of my work is made in meditation of the past, present, and future. My selection for the past titled ‘Immersion into the Subconcious’, was created while reflecting on the transition out of adolescence to adulthood. In this work I am challenging myself to see and understand significant symbols and complexes in a new light. The space this moment inhabits is a bubble that cannot be seen past. The repetition in the background represents a cyclical reality where the story within is repeated over and over again. My conversation with the subject at the time focused on the future beyond the bubble.
In the present, multitudes are made visible with ‘Accepting the flow’ and disrupted or obfuscated with the currently ‘untitled’ work. In one moment we can experience the spread out range of our being. Some symbols contain our stories others contain our desires for the future. Each element is tangible and within our reach. In the other moment depicted in ‘untitled’, what is in front of our eyes is obfuscated by many other paths. The background is abstracted to suggest the strings of fate. Perhaps the figure is gazing at these strings of fate rather than the beauty in front of them.
In the future room ‘Subliminal Decay’ presents a glimpse of an uncanny present or future. The gold eagle floats eerily over a forest that is slowly decaying. The eagle represents an imperial force historically. In this work I wanted to depict the way myself and my peers experience the byproduct of colonization and imperialism viscerally. It’s haunting but we can address it. Together these pieces inhabit a linear experience but once you get to the end of the room you can start again from anywhere. Over countless life cycles forward, backward, and laterally through time something is discovered. Please open the door and enter as you are.
Sardar says:
Rishteyaan de Raah
ਰਿਸ਼ਤਿਆਂ ਦੇ ਰਾਹ (Paths of Relationships)
This piece maps the intricate journeys of my family—myself, my parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents—through birth, marriage, and migration across the world. The detailed map of Punjab anchors the composition, with colored threads representing the lives of each family member.
Each thread marks a relationship, a crossing of oceans, or the point where a life ends. Where two lives meet in marriage, their threads intertwine, creating new colors. The dark textured background symbolizes the vast, unknown seas these journeys traversed.
Through these paths, the work explores themes of migration, love, loss, and belonging.