Dr Jacques Rangasamy

Senior Lecturer in Visual Arts and Theoretical Studies

• Allerton Studios G05
• T: 0161 295 2615
• E: j.rangasamy@salford.ac.uk

Mondays to Thursdays: 9.30am to 4.30pm

I studied at the Chelsea School of Art, Winchester School of Art and the Royal College of Art.  My doctoral project explored the influences of non-European Art forms on some European artists, and I have dwelt in the overlapping areas between cultures since. I have contributed to a number of curating and conference projects and subsequent publications related to multiculturalism in the UK, Europe and India.  I was chair of Shisha, the Arts Council Funded Agency for South Asian Arts from 2000 to 2012, which represented the contemporary Visual Arts of India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.  Shisha organised over 37 exhibitions, commissioned over 150 new works, organised 2 Asia Triennial in 2008 and 2011 respectively, published over 14 books and educational packs.  I am also co-editor of Universal Colours, a magazine devoted to the works of contemporary migrant and displaced artists in the UK and in Europe.  I co-curated an international sculpture project in Turku, Finland, in 2011, on the theme of displacement and multiculturalism, and represented the magazine at the recent Bologna Arts Book Festival, where we launched 3 new publications.  I was made a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in 2003 and awarded an MBE for services to University Multicultural Arts Education in 2011. 

I have lectured and taught at Long Island University in the US, the Universities of the Auvergne and Aix en Provence in France, the University of Porto in Portugal, The University of Zaragoza in Spain, the University of Mauritius and in the UK at the University of Oxford and of London, Goldsmiths College, the Royal College of Art, the Royal Academy of Art, Gwent College of Art, Canterbury College of Art and Falmouth College of Art, among others.  I joined the University of Salford in 1994 and taught on design and arts programmes, but concentrated mainly on the teaching of Theory and of studio practices on the BA Visual Arts course, where I also have supervisory responsibility for a few PhD students.  I was external examiner for MMU, The University of the West of England, Edinburgh College of Art and Leeds University for 13 consecutive years since1997.  I am the convenor for the Black Staff Forum at the University of Salford.

I was invited to open the Welsh Drawing Biennale in Wrexham, in November 1999.  Related to the theme of drawing, I produced “Utamaro to the Tunes of Miles Davis” Symposium on Trace: Memory, Materiality and Context in Contemporary Art, the 1999 Liverpool Biennale, Liverpool John Moore University, 25 September 1999.  Publisher: CAIR/Liverpool John Moore University, and “Lines of Desire”, Catalogue Essay for International Exhibition of Drawing, Blue Coat Gallery, Oldham Art Gallery,  April 1998,

 I chaired a working session for the “Whose Heritage?” Conference in Manchester 1999 and also chaired a day’s session for the conference on Migration, Work and Identity for the Museum of Science and Industry, November 2000.  Related to this interest I produced “Understanding Institutional racism” in INSTITUTIONAL RACISM IN HIGHER EDUCATION, Edited by Ian Law et al., Trentham Books 2004

On a general and ongoing interest in curating, reviewing and promoting the work of contemporary artists and of non-European art, I produced a variety of outputs, examples being: (a) “2000 years of Indian Sculpture, a review”, in Imperium, Interdisciplinary Journal of Media and Post-Colonial Studies, ISSN 1473-219X, Digital publication. (b) "Life of the Buddha in Indian Sculpture (Ashtamaha-Pratiharya): An Iconological Analysis".  New Delhi, 1982,  in  JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY,  Vol. 2, 1983, p. 315-6. (c) "Balraj Khanna:  Paintings"  in ART  MONTHLY,  July 1990. "Confrontations" in  THIRD TEXT,  Issue No. 22,  Spring 1993, (d) "Critical Difference"  in UNTITLED, Issue No. 2, Autumn 1993.  "Memory & Traces" in UNTITLED, Issue No. 5, Autumn 1994 (e) "White Mischief" in CREATIVE CAMERA, August-September 1995, ISSN 9770011087000, p.8-9 (f) "Kanubhai Gandhi" in UNTITLED, Issue 10, Spring 1996, (g) "Creative Urges" in ARTISTS NEWSLETTER, November 1996, ISSN 9770261342034, p.13 (h) “Suzie Gilbert”,  Paintings.  Catalogue Essay, 1992  (i) “Personal Mythologies”. Catalogue Essay, Kent Institute of Art & Design, 1990 traveling exhibition, “Juginder Lamba- From the Wood,”  Catalogue Essay, Bluecoat Gallery, Liverpool.  22 July-26 August 1995 Exhibition Catalogue ISBN 0952294141 p.7-16,  (j) “Laranjo and the Innocence of Vision” Catalogue Essay of traveling exhibition, Portugal, February 2000  ISBN 972-97347-1-2, p. 9-13, (k) “Mirror, Mirror on the Wall in BEYOND FRONTIERS, Edted by A.Ghosh and J. Lamba, Saffron Books, ISBN 1-872843-21-2 (l) “A Deo Missa” in PRISTINE, New Work from Grisdale Forest by Jill Randall.  Published bi Jill Randall  ISBN 0 9525450 7 1, (M) Preface to Between Kismet and Karma (2011) Ed. Dr. Anania Kabir et al, Shisha Publishers , ISBN 978-0-9567755-0-4 (n) Introduction to Asia Triennial Manchester 2008, Shisha Publisher,  ISBN      978-0-9545563-9-6 (o) Boat-Vene (2011) EU-MAN publisher, Helsinski, ISBN 978-951-98845-5-4