The Paglees are a feminist collective of artists of South Asian origin living across the United States. Paglee or pagli means crazy woman in a number of South Asian languages. In their exhibition, The Paglees investigate — with fierceness, beauty, and wit — the impact on women of generations of patriarchy, religion, white supremacy, colonialism, violence, capitalism, and environmental plunder. 

The title of the exhibition derives from Rosa Parks’ words: “There is just so much hurt, disappointment, and oppression one can take. The bubble of life grows larger. The line between reason and madness grows thinner.”   

The Paglees: Between Reason and Madness questions and reframes the labeling of non-conforming women as crazy and the marginalization of immigrant women of color. This collective exhibition presents new decolonial narratives that center the reason and wisdom of brown women of the Global South and diaspora, and provide pathways to a creative feminist future. The Paglees believe in working in collaboration with other marginalized communities to build bridges and demand social, environmental, and legal justice for all.

This feminist collective’s third exhibition premieres the Paglees’ first collaborative print, and several new works by the artists respond to the growing authoritarianism in the United States. The seven Paglees are Shelly Bahl (New York City), Monica Jahan Bose (Washington, DC), Fawzia Khan (Minneapolis, Minnesota), Indrani Nayar-Gall (Charlotte, North Carolina), Renluka Maharaj (Boulder, Colorado), Nirmal Raja (Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Boston, Massachusetts), and Pallavi Sharma (San Ramon, California). They are diasporic South Asians with roots in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Trinidad & Tobago.

All events are free and open to the public. For ASL interpretation or other accommodations, please contact Kara Carmack, Director of the Catherine G. Murphy Gallery, kcarmack597@stkate.edu at least one week prior to the event.