Mandeep Wirk

Mandeep Wirk is an Indo-Canadian writer, social activist, artist, and educator. She is best known for her writing and artwork. She was a Surrey Art Gallery artist-in-residence in 2015.

Early Life

Wirk was born in Kenya, but grew up in Tanzania. As a young girl her family immigrated to England in 1967. She developed her passion for painting in elementary school. She was a teenager in England, when her family decided to relocate to Canada in 1972. Her family settled in Abbotsford, British Columbia. Her family had a farm in Abbotsford, British Columbia that she worked on while growing up.  Wirk and her family arrived in Canada when multiculturalism focused policies were beginning. She has seen Euro-Canadians shift from being intolerant of non-white immigrants to socially accepting them.

Education

After completion of high school, Wirk attended the University of British Columbia where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree. She also completed her training to become a teacher at the University of British Columbia. She graduated with a Master of Arts in Psychology from Queens University in Kingston, Ontario. She has a Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults.

Research

Wirk researched and investigated the effects intercultural friendships have upon female university students living in a multicultural Canadian city. 

Work

Wirk worked as an English Teacher in Japan for five years. She was selected to be a BC Cultures Days Ambassador in 2015. As a BC Cultures Days Ambassador, she invited people to contribute to the community art project Surrey’s Vibrant Cultural Mosaic with mix-media collages. She wrote “ACT NOW on Reconciliation” for Rungh Magazine’s Vol. 5, No.1 issue in 2017. The article focuses on artist Cathy Busby, and her artwork WE CALL. Wirk wrote “Am I Dancing My Life Away?” in 2018, for Rungh Magazine’s Vol.6, No.1 issue. The article was a review of the reading of Chivalry is Dead by playwright Munish Sharma.

Artwork

In 2011, Wirk was one of six artists to be featured in the Surrey Art Gallery’s exhibition From the Land of Five Rivers which ran from May 13^th to August 14^th, 2011. The exhibition was a platform for artists who trace their ancestry from Punjab, India to show their work. Her art showcased the traditions and culture of her ancestry and how living in Canada has influenced her.

In 2015, the Surrey Art Gallery celebrated it’s 40^th Anniversary with three exhibitions. The exhibition titled Re:Source – A Living Archive 1975-2015 featured the work of artists-in-residence Jim Adams, Polly Gibbons, Cora Li-Leger, Haruko Okano and Mandeep Wirk. Wirk made several collages for the exhibition with the theme of pluralism. Wirk’s initial collage depicted the multiculturalism the Surrey Art Gallery emphasized during it’s first decade. Wirk’s second collage showed the second decade of the Gallery, where Canadian culture shifted to become more diverse. Her third collage focused on Sikh artist Jarnail Singh whose art work was featured during the third decade of the Gallery. Her final collage featured pictures of boats adrift to highlight the global crisis of migrants. 

Wirk was one of the artists selected to have there artwork shown at the Reach Gallery Museum for the 2021 Fraser Valley Biennial.

References

1. “From the Land of Five Rivers.” Canada, Surrey Art Gallery, 2011.

2. Wirk, Mandeep. “Multiculturalism Is a Process.” The Source, 18 Nov. 2014, https://thelasource.com/en/2014/11/17/multiculturalism-is-a-process/. Accessed 4 March 2024.

3. “From the Land of Five Rivers.” Canada, Surrey Art Gallery, 2011.

4. Wirk, Mandeep. “Multiculturalism Is a Process.” The Source, 18 Nov. 2014, https://thelasource.com/en/2014/11/17/multiculturalism-is-a-process/. Accessed 4 March 2024.

5. Wirk, Mandeep. “Multiculturalism Is a Process.” The Source, 18 Nov. 2014, https://thelasource.com/en/2014/11/17/multiculturalism-is-a-process/. Accessed 4 March 2024.

6. Wirk, Mandeep. “Live on a Farm.” The Tyee, 4 October 2018, https://thetyee.ca/Culture/2018/10/04/Live-On-A-Farm. Accessed 4 March 2024.

7. Wirk, Mandeep. “Multiculturalism Is a Process.” The Source, 18 Nov. 2014, https://thelasource.com/en/2014/11/17/multiculturalism-is-a-process/. Accessed 4 March 2024.

8. Wirk, Mandeep. “Multiculturalism Is a Process.” The Source, 18 Nov. 2014, https://thelasource.com/en/2014/11/17/multiculturalism-is-a-process/. Accessed 4 March 2024.

9. Days, Culture. “2015.” Culture Days, https://culturedays.ca/en/bc/ambassadoralumni/2015 Accessed 4 March 2024.

10. Days, Culture. “2015.” Culture Days, https://culturedays.ca/en/bc/ambassadoralumni/2015  Accessed 4 March 2024.

11. Days, Culture. “2015.” Culture Days, https://culturedays.ca/en/bc/ambassadoralumni/2015  Accessed 4 March 2024.

12. Wirk Mandeep. “An Investigation of Intercultural Friendships among Female University Students in a Multicultural Canadian City.” Queen’s University, National Library of Canada - Bibliothèque Nationale Du Canada, 1993.

13. Adams, Jim, et al. Re: Source: A Living Archive, 1975-2015. Canada, Surrey Art Gallery, 2015.

14. Days, Culture. “2015.” Culture Days, https://culturedays.ca/en/bc/ambassadoralumni/2015  Accessed 4 March 2024.

15. Wirk, Mandeep. “ACT NOW on Reconciliation.” Rungh Cultural Society, 17 September 2017, https://rungh.thedev.ca/act-now-on-reconciliation/. Accessed 4 March 2024.

16. Wirk, Mandeep. “Am I Dancing My Life Away? Review of Chivalry Is Dead.” Rungh Cultural Society, 24 December 2018, https://rungh.thedev.ca/am-i-dancing-my-life-away/. Accessed 4 March 2024.

17. “Artists Trace Their Roots.” Surrey Now-Leader, 18 May 2011, https://www.surreynowleader.com/entertainment/artists-trace-their-roots-2888194. Accessed 4 March 2024.

18. “From the Land of Five Rivers.” Canada, Surrey Art Gallery, 2011.

19. “From the Land of Five Rivers.” Canada, Surrey Art Gallery, 2011.

20. “Surrey Art Gallery Celebrates Four Decades with Three New Exhibitions.” Peace Arch News, 16 January 2015, https://www.peacearchnews.com/entertainment/surrey-art-gallery-celebrates-four-decades-with-three-new-exhibitions-2769169. Accessed 4 March 2024.

21. “Surrey Art Gallery Celebrates Four Decades with Three New Exhibitions.” Peace Arch News, 16 January 2015, https://www.peacearchnews.com/entertainment/surrey-art-gallery-celebrates-four-decades-with-three-new-exhibitions-2769169. Accessed 4 March 2024.

22. Adams, Jim, et al. Re: Source: A Living Archive, 1975-2015. Canada, Surrey Art Gallery, 2015.

23. Adams, Jim, et al. Re: Source: A Living Archive, 1975-2015. Canada, Surrey Art Gallery, 2015.

24. Adams, Jim, et al. Re: Source: A Living Archive, 1975-2015. Canada, Surrey Art Gallery, 2015.

25. Adams, Jim, et al. Re: Source: A Living Archive, 1975-2015. Canada, Surrey Art Gallery, 2015.

26. Adams, Jim, et al. Re: Source: A Living Archive, 1975-2015. Canada, Surrey Art Gallery, 2015.

27. “Fraser Valley-Based Artists Well Represented in New Season of Exhibitions at The Reach.” The Reach Gallery Museum, 22 January 2021, https://thereach.ca/fraser-valley-based-artists-well-represented-in-new-season-of-exhibitions-at-the-reach/. Accessed 4 March 2024.