Signs of Asia

Credit line: On loan from Mathew Welch

Ketna Patel (b. 1968, Kenya) is a British-Indian pop artist. Born in East Africa, educated in UK, and based in Southeast Asia and India for the last twenty-five years, she uses her training in Design and Architecture to map observations gleaned from her travels onto an existentialist, yet to be defined new global anthropology that is fast emerging. Having transplanted her studio from Singapore to two 'travelling studios' in the UK and India, she describes herself as being deeply tri-cultural; grounded in an evolving human identity beyond the rapidly evaporating boundaries of culture, nationality and geography.

After graduating from The Architectural Association in London with a degree in architecture, Ketna moved to Singapore to begin her career as an architect. Afterwards, a disillusionment with the corporate world led her on a journey of metaphysical exploration, when she started questioning her existence, her place in the world, and society in general. Having given up a corporate career, Ketna then embarked on a career as an artist.

Her art is about much of her own personal journey as an outsider and global citizen, observing, discovering and embracing one's cultural identity and the desire to belong to a community. Reflections of socio-political and cultural identity exploration in everyday life of today and yesterday are common themes portrayed through her art.