About
01

About

Hetain Patel is a London based artist and filmmaker.

His films, sculptures, live performances, paintings and photographs have been shown worldwide in galleries, theatres, and on iconic public screens including Piccadilly Circus, London and Times Square, New York. His works have been presented at the Venice Biennale, Ullens Centre for Contemporary Art, Beijing and Tate Modern, London to Sadler’s Wells, where he is a New Wave Associate.

Patel's work exploring identity and freedom, using choreography, text and popular culture appears in multiple formats and media, intended to reach the widest possible audience. His video and performance work online have been watched over 50 million times, which includes his TED talk of 2013 titled, ‘Who Am I? Think Again’.

Patel is represented by Chatterjee & Lal, Mumbai, is a supported artist at Copperfield, London, a Patron of QUAD, Derby, and a trustee of the Liverpool Biennial. He is the winner of the Film London Jarman Award, 2019, Kino Der Kunst Festival’s Best International Film 2020, and was selected for British Art Show 9, 2021/22. In 2021 Patel received a Paul Hamlyn Foundation Artist Award, a Henry Moore Foundation Award, declined a British Empire Medal and was a judge on Sky Arts television series, Landmark.

Patel's works are in public and private collections in the UK and internationally, including Tate, British Council, Arts Council England, Government Art Collection, Manchester Art Gallery, M+ Museum Hong Kong, KNMA New Delhi, and Fondazione In Between Art Film, Rome.

Selected Solo Exhibitions

  • 2023

    Don't Look at the Finger, Tate St Ives, UK

  • 2023

    Baa’s House, Humber Street Gallery, Hull, UK

  • 2023

    Cars & Carpets, Chatterjee & Lal, Mumbai, India

  • 2022

    Landing, Mayflower400 commission, Savoy Cinema, Bassetlaw, UK

  • 2022

    Trinity, New Art Exchange, Nottingham, UK; Chatterjee & Lal, Mumbai, India

  • 2021

    Baa’s House 11, CIRCA, Piccadilly Lights screen London, Times Square New York, K-Pop Square Seoul, Unika Vision Tokyo

  • 2021

    Trinity, John Hansard Gallery, Southampton, UK

  • 2021

    Baa’s Gold, Copperfield, London, UK

  • 2020

    Heavy Metal & Plastic Dreams, Birmingham Library, UK

  • 2018

    Don’t Look at the Finger, Chatterjee & Lal, Mumbai; Tanzhaus Dusseldorf; John Hansard Gallery, UK; New Art Gallery Walsall, UK

  • 2017

    Don’t Look at the Finger, Manchester Art Gallery; QUAD, Derby, UK

  • 2015

    The Jump, Wood Street Galleries, Pittsburgh, USA

  • 2015

    The Other Suit, The Agency Gallery, London, UK

  • 2015

    The Other Suit, Chatterjee & Lal, Mumbai, India

  • 2014

    Fiesta Transformer, C-Mine, Genk, Belgium

  • 2014

    At Home, Pump House Gallery, London, UK

  • 2013

    At Home, mac, Birmingham, UK

  • 2012

    At Home, Chatterjee & Lal, Mumbai, India

  • 2012

    At Home, New Art Exchange, Nottingham, UK

  • 2010

    Sacred Bodies, National Office, Arts Council England, London, UK

  • 2007

    Coded Gestures, Usher Gallery, The Collection, Lincoln, UK

  • 2007

    Sine Language, City Gallery, Leicester, UK; Djanogly Art Gallery, Nottingham, UK; London Printworks Trust, Brixton, UK; Gallery Oldham (collaborative performance and video installation with beatboxer Jason Singh)

  • 2004

    Lagan, Bolton Museum and Art Gallery, UK; 20-21 Visual Arts Centre, Scunthorpe,UK

Selected Group Exhibitions

  • 2023

    Finding Family, Foundling Museum, London, UK

  • 2023

    Milk, Wellcome Collection, London, UK

  • 2022

    Moving Bodies, Moving Images, Whitechapel Art Gallery, London, UK

  • 2021/22

    British Art Show 9, Manchester, Wolverhampton, Aberdeen, Plymouth, UK

  • 2021

    The Fire Within, Various locations, Wigan, UK

  • 2020

    Peer to Peer, Online, Hong Kong - UK exchange

  • 2020

    Visions in the Nunnery (Lead Artist), Nunnery Gallery, London, UK

  • 2019

    American Export, Grand Union Birmingham and Regent St Cinema, London, UK

  • 2019

    It Ain’t Half Racist Mum! (screening alongside Stuart Hall film), ICA, London, UK

  • 2019

    Kaleidoscope, Somerset House, London, UK

  • 2019

    Deeper Within Its Silence, Devi Art Foundation, Delhi, India

  • 2019

    Drawing Biennial, Drawing Room, London, UK

  • 2019

    Shall We Dance, MUCEM, Marseille, France

  • 2018

    Speech Acts, Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester, UK

  • 2018

    Common Third, Copperfield, London, UK

  • 2018

    Everything We Do Is Music, Drawing Room, London, UK

  • 2016

    Now! Now!, Chelsea College of Arts, London UK. Curated by Sonia Boyce

  • 2015/16

    Asia Pacific Triennial, Brisbane, Australia

  • 2015

    Doug Fishbone’s Leisure Land Golf, 56th Venice Biennale, Italy

  • 2015

    SPHERES 7, Galleria Continua, Le Moulin, France

  • 2013

    SPHERES 6, Galleria Continua, Le Moulin, France

  • 2012

    Indian Highway, Ullens Centre for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China

  • 2010

    Frictive Familiarities, Art Kino, Stockholm, Sweden

  • 2010

    Progress Report, InIVA, Rivington Place, London, UK

  • 2010

    No Heroes, Redcat Theatre, Walt Disney, Concert Hall, Los Angeles, USA

  • 2010

    Punctum 1, Lakeeren Art Gallery, Mumbai, India

  • 2009

    Wonder What The Others Are Up To?, Gallery OED, Cochin, India

  • 2009

    Pattern Recognition, City Gallery, Leicester, UK

  • 2008

    Next We Change Earth, New Art Exchange, Nottingham, UK

  • 2008

    Pavilion/Photofusion, Photofusion, London, UK

  • 2006

    All Our Tomorrows, Kunstraum der Universitaet Lueneburg, Germany

  • 2006

    Excess, Curated by Deborah Dean, Angel Row Gallery, Nottingham, UK

  • 2005

    Young British Art, The Castle, Cieszyn, Poland

  • 2004

    Lagan (2 person show with Chila Kumari Burman), The Art Exchange, Nottingham, UK

Live Performances and Film Festivals

  • 2023

    Reflex, Antibodies Festival, HH Art Space, Tetely, British Council, Goa, India (Performance)

  • 2022

    Reflex, India Art Fair & British Council, Delhi, India (performance)

  • 2022

    BFI Flare Film Festival, London, UK (Screening Trinity)

  • 2021

    Baa’s Gold 10, National Gallery, London, UK (performance commission)

  • 2021

    Don’t Look, Asia Society Triennial, New York City, USA (perforamance)

  • 2019

    YouTube Made Me, Laban and UK/International tour (performance)

  • 2018

    Lets Talk About ‘Dis, Sadler’s Wells, London, Royal Opera House, London, UK (performance)

  • 2016

    American Man, Sadler’s Wells, London (performance)

  • 2015

    American Boy, CODA Festival, Oslo, Norway (performance)

  • 2015

    iMovie 2.0, National Gallery of Modern Art, Mumbai, India (performance)

  • 2014

    iMovie 2.0, Extinction Marathon, Serpentine Gallery, London, UK (performance)

  • 2014

    Let’s Talk About Dis, for Candoco Dance Company, Queen Elizabeth Hall, London, UK and national tour (performance)

  • 2014

    American Boy, Bush Theatre, London, UK (performance)

  • 2014

    American Boy, Sadler’s Wells, London and UK national tour (performance)

  • 2014

    Let’s Talk About Dis, Queen Elizabeth Hall, London and UK national tour (performance)

  • 2013

    Be Like Water, National Tour, UK (performance)

  • 2013

    TEN, Théâtre de Gennevilliers, France (French version) (performance)

  • 2013

    TEN, CCNC, Caen, France (French version) (performance)

  • 2012

    Me and Me Dad and Me Wife, Tate Modern, Tanks, London, UK (new performance commission)

  • 2012

    Be Like Water, Royal Opera House, London, UK (new performance commission)

  • 2012

    Elephant, Southbank Centre, London, UK (new performance commission)

  • 2012

    TEN, British Dance Edition, London, UK (performance)

  • 2011

    TEN, Minto:Live (in collaboration with Charlie Freuen and Nikki Tala-Oloa), Sydney Festival, Sydney, Australia (performance)

  • 2011

    TEN, Silesian Dance Theatre, Poland

  • 2011

    TEN, British Council’s Edinburgh Showcase 2011, Edinburgh, UK

  • 2008

    Unpicked & Dismantled, Part of Textile '07 Biennale, Kaunas, Lithuania (performance)

  • 2007

    Raga Erhu (in collaboration with Shane Shambhu and Ling Peng), LOUD TATE, Tate Britain, London UK

  • 2006

    Copy/Paste (in collaboration with Gurpreet Kullar and Jason Singh), Bonington Gallery, Nottingham, UK (performance)

  • 2005

    Reflected Identity, Wolverhampton Art Gallery, UK (performance)

Awards and Residencies

  • 2021

    Paul Hamlyn Foundation Artist Award, London, UK

  • 2021

    Henry Moore Foundation Artist Award, UK

  • 2020

    Winner, Best International Film, Kino Der Kunst, Munich (Germany)

  • 2019

    Winner, Film London Jarman Award (UK)

  • 2009

    501 Artspace, Chongqing, China. 2 months as Artist in Residence

  • 2009

    Artists Taking The Lead (East Midlands U.K - Shortlisted)

  • 2009

    Satyajit Ray Short Film Award (National - Shortlisted)

  • 2008

    Winner, Nottingham Creative Business of the Year, UK

  • 2005-7

    Lakeside Arts Centre. 2 years as Artist in Residence, UK

  • 2004

    Decibel Award. Awarded by Arts Council England, East Midlands to support 2 years research and development.

  • 2004

    The Art House/Esmee Fairbairne Bursary for 3 month residency and exhibition at 20-21 Visual Arts Centre, Scunthorpe.

Education and Appointments

  • 2021 - date

    Trustee, Liverpool Biennial, UK

  • 2020 - date

    Patron, Film London Jarman Award, UK

  • 2019 - date

    Artist Advisor, Jerwood Arts, UK

  • 2019 - 21

    Artist Council, a-n, UK

  • 2019 - date

    Patron, QUAD, Derby, UK

  • 2010 - 13

    Regional Council Member, Arts Council England, East Midlands, UK

  • 2009 - 13

    Trustee, Deda, Derby’s Dance Centre, Derby, UK

  • 2007 - date

    Visiting Lecturer (Fine Art), The Nottingham Trent University, UK

  • 2003

    BA Hons Fine Art, The Nottingham Trent University, UK

  • 2000

    Diploma Foundation Studies in Art and Design, The University of Salford, UK

Public Collections

  • Tate

  • British Council

  • Government Art Collection

  • Arts Council Collection

  • Manchester Art Gallery

  • Harris Museum, Preston

  • Salford University

  • University of Nottingham

  • M+ Museum, Hong Kong

  • Kiran Nada Museum of Art, Delhi, India

  • Fondazione In Between Art Film, Milan, Italy