©Chila Kumari Singh Burman MBE, Tiger Jamu on Pyar hi pyar (2021). Courtesy of the Artist.
We’re pleased to invite the public to join the Stuart Hall Library, one of the UK’s most important collections on global contemporary art and culture, with the launch of a striking new, limited-edition library membership card.
Artist Chila Kumari Singh Burman MBE was invited to create the design of our third edition of the library card, following the commissions of Larry Achiampong and Jade de Montserrat. The card features a neon tiger set against a kaleidoscopic patchwork of bright patterns titled ‘Tiger Jamu on Pyar Hi Pyar’ (2021)
The tiger, a recurring motif in Chila’s work, is both a national symbol of India and an emblem of urgent ecological concern, with the species now highly endangered. India is home to nearly 70% of the world’s wild tiger population, making its survival deeply tied to the country’s identity and responsibility. By invoking the tiger, Chila draws on its associations with courage and strength while simultaneously underscoring the critical importance of conservation today. Its repetition across her practice transforms the image into a call to action.
Another motif central to Chila’s visual language is the grid. In the image on card, patterns are arranged within a grid-like structure, recalling both the organisational logic of comics and graphic novels and the rational clarity of Western modernism. Yet, within this framework, Chila’s vibrant forms strain against containment. The grid flattens and orders, but the luminous tiger breaks through—an assertion of vitality, strength, and freedom against restraint.
Inside the grid, bold, kaleidoscopic, mandala-inspired patterns radiate joy and energy, hallmarks of Chila’s practice. These works, created through her recent experiments with digital drawing on the iPad, draw the viewer hypnotically in, balancing structure with exuberance.
Known for her vivid, politically charged practice, Burman has worked with iniva in 2007, when she presented the exhibition and participatory art workshop Candy Pop and Juicy Lucy, touring her father’s original 1970s ice cream van across East London. Her work continues to resonate with the ethos of the Stuart Hall Library, engaging imagination, history, and visual culture.
The launch forms part of iniva’s ongoing mission to share contemporary voices, diverse histories, and creative practices of Black and Global Majority artists, while making the library and archive collections more accessible to audiences locally and nationally.
Named in honour of iniva’s first chairperson and cultural theorist Professor Stuart Hall, the Stuart Hall Library serves as the intellectual and social hub of iniva. It is a specialist library that centres art and theory publications from the Global Majority, African, Asian, Caribbean, Polynesian, Latinx, and diaspora perspectives.
Membership is free and open to everyone. Cardholders can drop in to explore the library’s extensive collection of books, exhibition catalogues, zines, and journals. They can also access iniva’s Archive by appointment. Whether you are a student, artist, researcher, or simply just curious about art and ideas, the collections are here for you.
“Our library has always been a space for dialogue, discovery, and connection,” says Tavian Hunter, Library and Archive Manager at iniva. “The new membership card design is a small but significant way to welcome more people in, making it easier to find out about iniva and enjoy the rich histories and creative collections in our care.”
Sepake Angiama, Artistic Director of iniva says: “We are super excited to have this opportunity to work with Chila Kumari Singh Burman, an artist that iniva has long applauded for her incredible use of colour and pattern, while drawing from the rich cultural heritage.”
If you have recently joined the library but have not yet collected your membership card, you can pick up the new limited-edition design on your next visit. Replacement of lost cards during this period will incur a £10 fee, while stocks last.
To sign up for a free membership card, visit the Stuart Hall Library in person, Tuesdays to Fridays, 10am–5pm, at 16 John Islip Street, London SW1P 4JU, or apply online via www.iniva.org/library
About Chila Kumari Singh Burman
Chila Kumari Singh Burman (b. Liverpool) is an artist renowned for her vibrant, multi-disciplinary, radical feminist practice rooted in her Punjabi heritage and working-class upbringing. Her work is characterised by its bold use of colour and intricate patterns, exploring the intersections of personal mythology and collective histories, as well as issues of visibility and representation.
Throughout her career, Burman has exhibited widely, with her work featured in prestigious institutions such as Tate Britain and the Victoria and Albert Museum. Her 2025 exhibitions include presentations at the Imperial War Museum North, Nevill Holt Festival, and the ICA London. She has also produced large-scale public art installations in prominent locations including Covent Garden, Leicester Square Gardens, and the Royal Pavilion in Brighton, and was a finalist for the Fourth Plinth, further establishing her influence in reshaping narratives within the art world. Chila has upcoming commissions and exhibitions with Perth Art Gallery, the Royal Docks and Jodhpur Art Week later this year.