British-Indian artist's ice cream van art shortlisted for London's Trafalgar Square Fourth Plinth

British-Indian artist Chila Kumari Burman's vibrant installation, inspired by her father's migration from India to the UK, has been shortlisted for a public vote for selection as the next sculpture for Trafalgar Square's Fourth Plinth.

Burman's artwork, 'The Smile You Send Returns To You', is one of seven proposals introduced by Mayor of London Sadiq Khan on Monday as potential additions to the plinth at the iconic landmark.

The plinth regularly features artworks that reflect and celebrate the multicultural essence of London.

At the centre of this piece sits Burman’s father’s ice cream van ‘The Rocket’.

The ice cream van has been a recurring motif throughout Chila Kumari Burman's works over the last 40 years. It is a metaphor for a childhood memory belonging to the broader economic, political, and social history of migration from India to Britain, and a symbol of optimism.

“It tells of the artist’s own lived experience, and her father’s voyage on the HMS Battory from India to the UK. It is a story of resourcefulness and entrepreneurship, amid the struggle of adapting to a new life elsewhere. A journey that took him from Calcutta’s Dunlop factory, where his magic tricks earnt his transfer overseas, to Liverpool’s Dunlop factory.” stated the London government website.

Liverpool-born and London-based, Burman works across a wide range of mediums, including printmaking, drawing, painting, installation and film. She calls herself a ‘Punjabi Liverpudlian’.

The shortlisted artists, including Burman, Gabriel Chaile, Ruth Ewan, Thomas J Price, Veronica Ryan, Tschabalala Self, and Andra Ursuta, have displayed maquettes of their proposed artworks at the National Gallery until March 17.