New artwork to go on permanent display in Perth
Perth Art Gallery today announced that leading contemporary artist Chila Kumari Singh Burman MBE will display a new permanent work at Perth Art Gallery this September.
Following the installation of a festive light trail in November 2022, which now runs annually, Perth and Kinross Council looked to reimagine one of the sculptures, a unicorn, in collaboration with a celebrated artist.
The white wireframe light sculpture previously sat outside Perth Museum to celebrate the opening of the venue in 2024 and its inaugural temporary exhibition, Unicorn. Since then, Burman and her studio have reimagined this beloved installation using her signature artistic style of neon light work to create a vibrant new artwork which will now have a new permanent home in Perth Art Gallery, renaming it Unicorn (Ekasringa).
Burman’s works are celebrated internationally and are represented in the collections of the Arts Council England, British Council, Science Museum, Tate, the V&A, the Wellcome Trust, and the Devi Foundation in New Delhi. Recently her work has featured in exhibitions at the Venice Biennale, Tate Britain, and at fellow Art Fund Museum of the Year 2025 Finalist Compton Verney. Burman is a pioneering figure in the British Feminist Art movement. Her radical practice explores gender, cultural identity and representation, fusing personal mythology with political urgency, rooted in her Punjabi heritage and working-class upbringing. Trained at the Slade School of Fine Art, she works across printmaking, painting, installation, film, and neon.
Chila Kumari Singh Burman, said: “ I chose the unicorn, the national animal of Scotland, as the sole figure for this sculpture because it’s so deeply rooted in Scottish history and heraldry. For the piece’s return to Perth in 2025, I’ve redrawn and reimagined it in my vivid neon style, bringing the figure to life with riotous colour and geometric design. I also drew inspiration from the Ekasringa, a mythical Hindu creature that symbolizes purity, spiritual strength, and the power of discipline. I’m fascinated by religious and mythological figures and love reinterpreting them to explore themes of hybridity, identity, and cross-cultural storytelling. The unicorn also holds a powerful place in global fantasy, symbolizing magic and freedom. Through my use of neon, sticker gems, bindis, and glitter, I’m subverting aesthetic hierarchies and reclaiming kitsch and feminine decoration as powerful artistic tools. In Unicorn (Ekasringa), the ancient meets the fantastical, creating a joyful, punk, and uplifting beacon that bridges cultures and welcomes everyone who enters Perth Art Gallery.”
“Rhona Corbett, Head of Museums and Collections at Culture Perth and Kinross said: “We are excited to have renowned British contemporary artist Chila Burman’s vibrant and colourful artwork, Unicorn (Ekasringa) joining the permanent collection at Perth Art Gallery. Burman is known internationally for creating irreverent pop and punk inspired works in kaleidoscopic colour, drawing on aspects of Indian and British cultural heritage. Her reworking of the Unicorn sculpture will bring a sense of colour, fun, and light to the playful nature of Perth Art Gallery and we believe it will become a firm favourite with visitors.”
Perth and Kinross Council leader Councillor Grant Laing added: “We are thrilled to welcome Chila Kumari Singh Burman’s vibrant new artwork, Unicorn (Ekasringa), to its permanent home at Perth Art Gallery. I’m sure everyone who remembers the original from outside Perth Museum will be excited to see this reimagining. Burman is an outstanding artist and it is fantastic that this amazing piece will now be on permanent display for the people of Perth and Kinross.”
From 4 September 2025, Unicorn (Ekasringa) will be on display at Perth Art Gallery. There will be an opportunity to meet with Burman on Thursday 4 September at 5pm at Perth Art Gallery at a free Meet the Artist event. Tickets are limited and available now via Perthshire Box Office.
Unicorn (Ekasringa) joins the long-term loan of paintings, drawings and personal effects by celebrated Victorian painter John Everett Millais and his Perth-born wife, Effie Gray. The permanent displays at Perth Art Gallery feature work by JD Fergusson, Margaret Morris, Calvin Colvin and Joan Eardley and a new permanent display of photography, The Dark Room, has seen all gallery spaces open for the first time in more than 20 years. Perth Art Gallery is open from Thursday to Monday from 10am. Admission is free.