“Kaur is challenging what we expect to see in a gallery space.”
Tincture of Museum
“Her works… camouflage themselves within and assert their presence against Soane’s elegant interiors.”
Trebuchet Magazine
Mirror, Mirror is the largest solo presentation of Permindar Kaur’s work in a London institution to date and will take place across the main gallery and the historic manor. Kaur’s installations use a visual language of toys, clothing, and shelter to explore how domestic settings shape individuals, and how identity and background relates to these things. Child-like figures equipped with claws, horns, or beaks haunt the gallery like sentinels or misfits, suggesting protection, defiance or both. Drawing on cultural symbolism, including ceremonial Sikh colours such as saffron and navy, her works use techniques of camouflage whilst simultaneously asserting their presence. Throughout, motifs suggesting a high society country house — such as pairs of antlers — are set against materials such as felt or fleece, which suggest both the safety of a childhood comfort blanket or toy as well as the realities of everyday life.
Kaur has responded to Soane’s historic interiors by inserting new and existing works into different rooms, bringing a heightened dialogue between the home of Soane’s day and creating a sense of the manor being inhabited today with contemporary works — introducing both relatability and uneasiness in equal measure. Her interventions also speak to ideas of hierarchy and status threaded through Soane’s architecture. In several rooms, her chameleon-like figures appear to morph and merge into the historic fabric of the building — at once interlopers and guests.
The exhibition brings together new commissions including Threshold (2025) alongside recent works not previously been shown in a gallery, including Washing Line Beds (2024), an installation of black steel bed frames overhung with washing lines. Our clothes reflect our desires and hopes, the work exploring questions of status and aspiration. The title Mirror, Mirror alludes to the reflection of self — how we see ourselves, and how we are perceived by others. In evoking the character of the mirror in Snow White, Kaur points to childhood as a key site of identity formation, and begs the question of who is the truth-telling voice in the mirror and asking where does that come from?
“It leaves you feeling somewhat haunted, but unsure if it’s by a good or evil spirit.”
Lost Art
Recommended by
Art Fund’s Art Guide
Londonist
Euronews
and more
26 June – 21 September 2025
Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery
Ealing Green, London W5 5EQ
Access with general admission
Enjoy flexible admission during the following times:
Live in the London Borough of Ealing? Enjoy free admission every Friday this August to Permindar Kaur: Mirror, Mirror and Prem Sahib: Doubles — just bring proof of address. Advance booking is required.
Thursday 26 June 2025, 11am–1pm
Thursday 3 July 2025, 6.30–7.30pm
Thursday 7 August 2025, 5–8pm
Thursday 4 September 2025, 6–7pm
+44 (0) 20 3985 8888, pitzhanger@pitzhanger.org.uk
To be the first to hear about the latest updates from Pitzhanger, sign up to our newsletter:
Categories Art Exhibitions
Tags Art Exhibitions Permindar Kaur
Share this page
Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery
Ealing Green, London W5 5EQ
Ticketing, Opening Hours and Tour Enquiries: foh@pitzhanger.org.uk
Retail Enquires: retail@pitzhanger.org.uk
Reception: 020 3985 8888
Venue Hire: 020 3994 0966
Office: 020 3994 0967
Wednesday - Sunday: 10:00 - 17:00
First Thursday of the month: 10:00 - 20:00
Monday - Tuesday: Closed
Bank Holidays: 10:00 - 17:00
Last admissions one hour before closing
Partial Closure: 6 November, all day
Please note that the Eating Room in Pitzhanger Manor will be closed all day on Thursday 6 November for a private event. Artworks in the affected space will be temporarily off view, but General Admission continues as usual. All other rooms will be open as usual during our regular opening hours.
Questions? Email us at foh@pitzhanger.org.uk.
Wedding Open Day reminder: Noon - 4pm
Please note that although our Manor House remains open as normal, we are hosting our Wedding Open Day across the Manor space on 25th October 2025. Artworks in the Manor will be available as normal.
Questions? Email us at foh@pitzhanger.org.uk.
Partial Closure: 26–28 September
From Friday 26 to Sunday 28 September, only Pitzhanger Manor will be open while Pitzhanger Gallery remain closed for exhibition changeover.
General Admission will be reduced to £8 during this time. The Bella Pūlia Café and the Pitzhanger Shop will also be open.
Our new exhibition Howard Hodgkin: In a Public Garden opens on Wednesday 1 October.
Questions? Email us at foh@pitzhanger.org.uk.
Partial Closure: 18 October, 11.30am–5pm
Please note that the Upper Drawing Room in Pitzhanger Manor will be closed at 11.30am–5pm on Saturday 18 October for a private event. Artworks in the affected space will be temporarily off view, but General Admission continues as usual. All rooms will be open before and after this time during our regular opening hours.
Questions? Email us at foh@pitzhanger.org.uk.
Partial Closure: 31 October, 1–3.30pm
Please note that the Eating Room in Pitzhanger Manor will be closed at 1–3.30pm on Friday 31 October for a private event. Artworks in the affected space will be temporarily off view, but General Admission continues as usual. All rooms will be open before and after this time during our regular opening hours.
Questions? Email us at foh@pitzhanger.org.uk.
Gallery Access on Curator’s Talk Evening
Please note that 13 November, the Gallery will close at 6pm for the Curator’s Talk with Richard Calvocoressi and Nicholas Serota. From 5pm, there may be some set-up activity in the space, though it will remain open and accessible for ticket holders.
If you do not have a ticket for the talk, we recommend planning your visit a little earlier in the day to enjoy the full exhibition.
Questions? Email us at foh@pitzhanger.org.uk.
Partial Closure: 6 November, 10am–5pm
Please note that the Eating Room in Pitzhanger Manor will be closed at 10am–5pm on Thursday 6 November for a private event. Artworks in the affected space will be temporarily off view, but General Admission continues as usual. All rooms will be open before and after this time during our regular opening hours.
Questions? Email us at foh@pitzhanger.org.uk.
Partial Closure: 9 November, 10am–3pm
Please note that the Eating Room in Pitzhanger Manor will be closed at 10am–3pm on Sunday 9 November for a private event. Artworks in the affected space will be temporarily off view, but General Admission continues as usual. All rooms will be open before and after this time during our regular opening hours.
Questions? Email us at foh@pitzhanger.org.uk.
Get Tickets 