Imtiaz Dharker

Poet, artist and documentary filmmaker Imtiaz Dharker will be writing this year’s Manchester Art Gallery co-commission, responding to solo exhibitions from South Asian artists Neha Choski, Risham Syed, Mehreen Murtaza, Waqas Khan, Tentative Collective and Hetain Patel.

The exhibitions are part of New North and South, an ambitious three-year programme of contemporary art celebrating the shared heritage of South Asia and The North of England. Born in Pakistan, but living for many years in Britain, Imtiaz is a receipient of the Queen’s Gold Medal for Poetry, the Cholmondeley Award and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, her collections include Purdah, Postcards from god, I speak for the Devil and The terrorist at my table, Leaving Fingerprints and Over the Moon.

Her poems are on the GCSE and A Level English syllabus, and she regularly reads with other poets at Poetry Live! events all over the country to more than 25,000 students a year. ‘If there were to be a World Laureate, then for me the role could only be filled by Imtiaz Dharker,’ said Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy.