Chai and Talk

Join 2022 UTSC Writer-in-Residence and educator Sheniz Janmohamed in conversation with multidisciplinary artist Mariam Magsi. Virtually gathering over a cup of chai, the two will reflect on Magsi’s recently acquired work by the DMG, Kabilay ki Baiti (Daughter of the Tribe) (2019). Through their conversation, they will share their experiences as South Asian artists, and explore various topics related to food, culture, and heritage. Janmohamed will be premiering her poem written in response to Magsi’s work as part of the DMG x UTSC Writer-in-Residence program.

All participants are encouraged to make their own chai to enjoy during the talk.

This free program will be hosted on Zoom and is open to everyone. ASL interpretation will be provided for the talk. If you have other accommodation needs, please let us know when registering or contact dmg.utsc@utoronto.ca.

Sheniz Janmohamed is a poet and nature artist born and raised in Tkaronto with ancestral ties to Kenya, Kutch and Gujarat, India. Sheniz’s work has been featured in venues across the world, including the Jaipur Literature Festival, The National Arts Centre and the Aga Khan Museum (Toronto). An artist educator, Sheniz regularly visits schools and community organizations to teach, perform and inspire. She has three collections of poetry, published by Mawenzi House: Bleeding Light (2010), Firesmoke (2014) and most recently, Reminders on the Path (2021).

Mariam Magsi was born and raised in Karachi, Pakistan and is currently based in Toronto, Canada. Her ethnic heritage is Baloch and Punjabi. Working in photography, video, performance art and installation, she uses food items, inherited textiles, cultural paraphernalia and family archives to unpack themes related to constructions of identity, intergenerational trauma, gender and migration. Magsi’s projects include artistic and historic investigations into the practice of veiling (Purdah), an ongoing creative exploration of her Baloch identity and ancestry (Daughter of the Tribe), as well as artistic research into the food and hospitality cultures of South Asia (Dawat Yan Project). Magsi holds an MFA from OCAD University in Interdisciplinary Art, Media & Design and a BFA with Honors from University of Toronto in Studio Art & English Literature. Magsi's works have been featured on Vice Canada, Toronto Star, CNN Arabia, Scene Arabia, She Does The City, and she has exhibited at renowned galleries and festivals, such as: Art Gallery of Ontario (Toronto), Pen & Brush Foundation (NYC), Pride Photo Award (Amsterdam), and many more.

ABOUT THE DMG x U OF T SCARBOROUGH WRITER-IN-RESIDENCE PROGRAM

Each year the Doris McCarthy Gallery invites the University of Toronto Scarborough annual Writer-in-Residence to peruse the Doris McCarthy Gallery Collection and identify a work of art to inspire a piece of writing. Sheniz Janmohamed, was this year’s Writer-in-Residence and selected Mariam Magsi's newly acquired artwork Kabilay ki Baiti (Daughter of the Tribe) to develop her own written work of art. Such literary contributions add a lasting, innovative, and meaningful layer of interpretation to artworks in the permanent collection.