Jaskirt Dhaliwal-Boora

Jaskirt Dhaliwal-Boora (b.1985, Birmingham) is an award-winning visual artist whose work focuses on a socially engaged practice, working with local communities. She is interested in celebrating untold stories while exploring visual representations of gender, ethnicity and place.  

Dhaliwal-Boora creates work with the aim to empower and give voice to marginalised communities. In 2022 she made Inhale, Exhale a short film for BBC Arts and People, Place and Sport, a large scale photographic exhibition in partnership with Multistory and Birmingham 2022 Festival. 

People, Place and Sport was exhibited in multiple outdoor exhibitions across Sandwell and Birmingham from April - August 2022 and includes the BJP (British Journal of Photography) Portrait of Britain award winning image of thai-boxer Amelia and Natalie

In 2020-1 Jaskirt collaborated with women's refuge Birmingham Crisis Centre and published a zine, Aurat ki Himmat. These projects explore personal stories through portraits, details of place and conversations through workshops and interviews. In 2023 Dhaliwal-Boora has been the recipient of DYCP funding to make new work on the subject of violence against women and girls for an exhibition with TRACE in the summer 2023.

Dhaliwal-Boora has 12 portraits from Birmingham Lockdown Stories included in the permanent collection of BMAG (Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery), including the BJP Portrait of Britain awarding winning photo of Dr Mavi. This work was commissioned by GRAIN Projects in 2020 and in January 2021 sold out as Boora's first self published book

Dhaliwal-Boora’s work has been exhibited nationally, including Wembley Stadium and Manchester’s People Museum, and has been widely published, including in The Sunday Times and The Guardian. Boora has also been the recipient of awards including the Photo Imaging Council Award and the Magnum & Ideas Tap Sports Award for her work on Women's Football and Everyday Olympian.

Awards

2022  BJP Portrait of Britain winner, Vol.5. for the portrait of Amelia from People, Place and Sport and shortlist for portrait of Natalie. 

2021 BJP(British Journal of Photography) Portrait of Britain winner Vol.4 for the portrait of Dr Mavi from Birmingham Lockdown Stories

2021 Shortlist for Women Behind the Lens award for work on Mitti di Khushboo

2021 RBSA (Royal Birmingham Society of Artists) Photography first prize winner (£1000 award) for portrait of Aabidah Shah from Birmingham Lockdown Stories

2012 Magnum & Ideas Tap Photography Award for the EverydayOlympian body of work

2007 Photo Imaging Council Award for Women's Football body of work.

Selected Commissions | Projects

2023 Healing from Trauma, DYCP (Arts Council England) funded

2022-23 Selected for TRACE Mentorship, a year long mentorship programme culminating with a group exhibition in London 2023

2022 BBC Arts commission short film Inhale, Exhale for BBC iPlayer

2021-22 Birmingham 2022 Festival commission People, Place and Sport, 10 outdoor large scale exhibitions and a self published book. Working in Partnership with Multistory and supported by ACE and National Heritage funding. 

2020-21 Zine publication of Aurat ki Himmat (A Woman's Strength), raising £500 for women's refuge Birmingham Crisis Centre. A HG31 Homegrown commission.

2020-21 Coventry Culture commission to photograph cyclists for the Gearing Up exhibition at Coventry Transport Museum and along the Coventry canals.

2020 GRAIN Projects commission Birmingham Lockdown Stories.

2018-19 Multistory commission of Mitti Di Khushboo for the Blast! Photography Festival.

2012 Kalaboration & Cultural Olympiad commission for Everyday Olympian.

2008 British Asian Musicians, funded by Arts Council England.

2006-7 Women's Football commission and award from The Photo Imaging Council

Exhibitions

Portraits from MAC Labs residency, MAC at 60 exhibition, Midlands Art Centre, Sept - Nov 2022

Birmingham Lockdown Stories, Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, March - October 2022

Birmingham Lockdown Stories, Birmingham City Council House, April 2022 – Ongoing

People, Place and Sport main outdoor exhibit at Sandwell Valley Country Park, July-August 2022

People, Place and Sport, 8 community locations including Bournville Green, Birmingham Coach Station, Moseley Road Baths, St Pauls Square, Haden Hill Leisure Centre in Rowley Regis, Hadley Stadium in Smethwick, Wednesbury Leisure Centre and West Bromwich Leisure Centre, April - August 2022

People, Place and Sport, Birmingham 2022 Victoria Square Live Site, August 2022

Portraits from SAMPAD workshops, From City of Empire, to city of Diversity exhibition, Library of Birmingham, March - July 2022

Birmingham Lockdown Stories, Royal Birmingham Society of Artists (RBSA) Photography Open Exhibition, July - Sept 2021

Birmingham Lockdown Stories, FORMAT International Photography Festival Derby, March - December 2021

Mitti di Khushboo (the Smell of the Land), Lightwoods house, part of the Blast! Photography Festival, 2019

Women’s Football, The Lanchester Gallery, Coventry, 2013

Everyday Olympian, The Drum, Birmingham, 2012

Everyday Olympian, Centro buses in Coventry, 2012

Everyday Olympian, SouthKorea group show, 2012

Everyday Olympian, Foto8 Summershow, London, 2012

Everyday Olympian, Midlands Art Centre, Birmingham, 2012

Women’s Football, Wembley Stadium, 2011

British Asian Musicians, Hereford Photography Festival, 2011  

Women’s Football, Etihad Stadium, 2011

The Photography Collective, exhibition at Format Festival, 2011

Women’s Football, Manchester's People Museum, 2011

British Asian Musicians, New Arts Exchange, Nottingham, 2010 

Women’s Football, The Public, West Bromwich part of State of Play exhibition, 2010

Women’s Football, St Brendan's gallery, Bristol, 2010

Midlands Art Centre residency exhibition at Mead Gallery, Warwick Arts Centre, 2010

Bearwood portraits shown as part of Martin Parrs Show me a Secret exhibition, The Public, West Bromwich, 2010

Women’s Football, Lighthouse Gallery, Wolverhampton, 2009

British Asian Musicians, The Drum, Birmingham, 2009

And’Art artist residency groupexhibition, Tangier Cinemateque, Morocco, 2009

Puti Chappal shown as part ofSuperstitions exhibition at AOP (Association of Photographers) gallery, 2009

Bearwood portraits shown as part of Keylight Studios, London group exhibition, 2009

Sikhism Project, Nishkam Centre, Soho Road, Birmingham, 2009

Women’s Football, Coventry University Gallery, 2007

Women’s Football, UN Headquarters NY, 2007

Women’s Football, NEC, The Photography Show, 2007

Women’s Football, Redditch community hall, Birmingham City Women Football Ground, 2006

Socially Engaged Workshops

In recent years Dhaliwal-Boora has expanded her practice to include participatory workshops with people in her community. This informs and sometimes is the project itself. Some of the community groups and organisations Dhaliwal-Boora has worked with include:

2023 DYCP funded workshops with women's refuge Birmingham Crisis Centre.

2022 GRAINProjects commission to run workshops with the Canal and River Trust and OasisFoundry as part of their Faces of 2022 project.

2022 DerbyQuad Gallery workshops on shooting portraits.

2021 People, Place and Sport project included a series of 6 workshops with elder women (50+) exploring their life in sport.

2021 SAMPAD workshops with young people in response to the Dyche Archive collection for the From City of Empire, to City of Diversity exhibition. Collages and portraits made in the workshops exhibited at The Library of Birmingham in 2022. 

2020-21 Women's Refuge, Birmingham Crisis Centre workshops, culminating in individual zines and the collaborative zine Aurat ki Himmat.

2021 GRAIN Projects leading art workshops with Coventry Migrant and refugee Centre and youth group Grapevine, 2021. Photographs made from the workshop exhibited outdoors in Coventry City Centre in 2021. 

2020 GRAIN Projects commission Birmingham Lockdown Stories, included socially engaged workshops via Zoom.

2018-19 Mitti di Khushboo, workshops with family to document their histories and archival photographs.

Artist Talks

2022 (Nov) London College of Communication, BA Photography Course, in person

2022 (Oct) Ikon Gallery, Small Press Fair reading

2022 (Sept) PostCollective, Instagram Live with Jessica McDermott

2022 (Aug) WorkShowGrow Artist Salon talk, zoom

2022 (Aug) Victoria Square festival live site, in person

2022 (July) New Oscott Primary School, artist talk to primary school children about having a career in the arts, in person

2022 (May)  Moseley Road baths, People, Place and Sport artist talk and Q&A with Jess Piete (Multistory)

2022 (May) Bolton University, BA Photography Course, zoom

2021 (May) Kube Gallery,  panel discussion on Diversity in British Documentary with Gavin Robinson, Lloyd Ramos, Francheska Roberts, Laura Tobin and Ben Roberts, zoom

2020 (Aug) GRAIN Projects, Photo cafe talk with Anthony Luvera, Liz Wewiora and Nicola Shipley on socially engaged photography

2009 (Nov) Coventry University, BA Photography Course, in person

2008 (July) TheDrum, British Asian Musicians exhibition, in person

Lecturing

2022-Ongoing Birmingham City University, photography lecturer, researcher and L4 lead coordinator 

2021-22 Birmingham City University, visiting lecturer on the L4 photography course

2012-2021 King Edward Sixth Form College, Nuneaton, lecturer in photography and creative media production.

2019-20 Wolverhampton University, visiting lecturer on the L5 photography course

2012 Coventry University, Assistant Photography Lecturer (6month contract)

2010-12 St Brendan's Sixth Form College, photography lecturer

2006-2010 BBC Asian Network, broadcast assistant and interactive content producer

Education

2009-10 PGCE Cert Ed, Wolverhampton University

2004 - 2007 First Class in BA (Hons) Communication, Culture and Media, Coventry University

Books & Publications

Jaskirt Dhaliwal-Boora has self published her work, as well as having had her work featured in major publications. Here are some of the books, publications and interviews her work has featured in:

2022 & 23 Portrait of Britain book, Hoxton Mini Press

2022 People, Place and Sport book (self published)

2022 The Guardian, Best Shot feature

2022 BBC Midlands Today TV feature

2022 Royal Photographic Journal feature

2022 BBC London and BBC WM radio interviews

2022 & 2008 BBC Asian Network radio interview

2021 Aurat ki Himmat (A Woman's Strength) zine  (self published)

2021 & 2011 Format Festival publication

2021 Birmingham Lockdown Stories Book  (self published)

2021 Work Show Grow 2021 United publication

2021 No Go Press, 'Home' zine 

2021 Redeye blog and interview

2021 Open Eye Gallery Spotlight feature

2020 Cherry Blossom Trees and Birdsong book (self published)

2020 Plastic Childhoods book by Peter Kraftl

2019 Desi blitz website feature and interview

2012 The Sunday Times Magazine

2012 Fierce festival publication

2012 Metro newspaper

2010 The Guardian newspaper

2009 V&A British Asian Style book

2009 Eastern Eye newspaper feature

2008 Birmingham Post feature

2008 Birmingham Mail interview and feature

2007 British Journal of Photography

2007 Time of India newspaper

Portrait of Britain Award winner 2023
Showcased across the country with BJP and JCDecaux
The Guardian 'My Best Shot'
Featuring portrait of Mav from People, Place and Sport (2022)
People, Place and Sport
Exhibitions across Birmingham and Sandwell, part of the official Commonwealth Games Birmingham 2022 Festival
Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery
Unprecedented Times exhibition features portraits from the Birmingham Lockdown Stories, 2022
Portrait of Britain Award winner 2021
Showcased across the country with BJP and JCDecaux
Birmingham Lockdown Stories book
Self published book featuring work from Birmingham Lockdown Stories, 2020.
Blast! Photography Festival 2019
Mitti di Khushboo outdoor exhibition at Lightwoods park, Bearwood
Sunday Times Spectrum Magazine
Featuring work from Everyday Olympian, 2012
British Journal of Photography
Featuring work from Women's Football, 2006-2011
V&A Publication British Asian Style
Featuring work from British Asian Musicians, 2008-9
Using Format