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VISUAL ART UK Founded in 1999, Visual Art UK, with its head office in London is an innovative gallery, which offers a window into the treasure trove of art both historical and contemporary, from across the Indian subcontinent, UK and the world. It celebrates the richness and diversity of creative arts in varied media, modes and manifestations. The eminent institution hosts a steady program of curated art exhibitions held at prestigious centers and platforms on the world stage and also organizes virtual shows on the web. Visual Art UK is credited for honouring celebrated master artists while also supporting the young emerging talent. Through its extensive network of collectors, art institutions, artists, experts and partners in India and internationally including those in the UK, India, Europe, America, Middle and Far East, Visual Art follows an open door policy to facilitate innovation and promote art and aesthetics.
Vividh: Multiple Expressions of Indian Art, as the title suggests, is a special selection of art works of high aesthetic merit by a large group of artists from across India, genres and schools of art that makes Visual Art UK's annual show. The once a year exhibition presents a diverse range of artistic expressions, focussing on a comprehensive overview of Indian art over the last few decades. The wide-ranging annual exhibition provides an opportunity to the viewers and connoisseur to see, partake and collect master pieces by legends such as Jamini Roy, FN Souza, SH Raza, MF Husain, Satish Gujral, J Swaminathan, SG Vasudev and AA Raiba among others that sits beside some engaging work by young emerging stars on the global art scene. Vaishali Thakkar For more details on Visual Art UK please contact:
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VIVIDH | AN OVERVIEW OF CONTEMPORARY INDIAN ART By Sushma K Bahl Indian art and aesthetics cutting across schools of art and thought reflect its continuum of plural and intertwined cultures. The vividh (a word in Hindi derived from Sanskrit language means multifarious and diverse) collection offers a panoramic overview of the vivid expanse of contemporary Indian art scene. Traversing beyond the traditional boundaries and subjects, the multiple creative expressions discourse around the personal and the public, decorative and mythical, rural and urban, real and imaged. In its form too the assemblage of paintings shifts between portraiture and narratives or landscapes and abstraction. Defying a singular thrust, the holistic ensemble of around 50 paintings in varied forms and genres by 25 artists from around India, includes significant artworks by several renowned masters who share the space with select works by younger emerging artists on vividh platform. Most of the works featured in the exhibition are paintings. For the artist, the act of painting is like pouring his/her inside out from the heart hand and mind onto the canvas paper cloth board or another base. To quote Georgia O'Keeffe, “… I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn't say any other way… “. Manifest as a physical entity, painting often entails a distinctly composed metaphor in select colours, textures and forms that communicates an emotion, idea, experience or message. And for the rasik (taster/viewer) it is the encounter with the work that matters, depending on his/her 'ways of seeing' to quote John Berger. A subjective and intuitive process, one of the
earliest forms of art, painting continues to persist and flourish in its own niche parallel with the expansion of digital and other forms of art as is illustrated in this vivid collection. The multi-layered encounters, dreams and desires of the artists as featured here, offer the viewer a peep into the graphic eloquence and dynamics of a wide variety of artworks. The multitude of life-like as well as imagined masterpieces in this exhibition, as elucidated below, represent the artistic repertoire of masters of the Bengal and Santiniketan School as well as The Progressives, Shilpi Chakra, Cholamandal, Baroda and Bombay Groups. The mid-20th century paintings by legendary artists appear next to some fresh creations, as of here and now, by their younger contemporaries. The featured work is reflective of each creator's own socio-cultural-political leanings and life experiences in their trademark style as well as distinct aesthetics of the collective they are affiliated to. There is a substantial repertoire of portraiture in this ensemble. A recurrent theme in painterly renditions, the human form engages master artist FN Souza whose obsession with male and feminine figures is represented in the collection. The sensuousness and beauty of female figure is also at the center stage in work by SG Vasudev while mother child bonding is the undercurrent in painting by B Prabha. Shanti Panchal in contrast focusses his gaze on the innocence and plight of a young boy who appears in his
working boots and with a spade. His portrait of Maya with her long hair seems pensive. Artist-scholar KG Subramanyan's untitled woman looking upfront, eyes fixed and surrounded by birds and beasts for companionship, appears to come from another imagery world. Human portraits be it petite and curvaceous female figure or strong male form are also the playing fields in the work by Shanta Samant. Spiritual iconic form Lord Ganesh, invoked for auspicious beginnings, appears in a distinct incarnation in yet another work authored by SG Vasudev as a woven silk tapestry. The ability to stay rooted and indigenous while also absorbing and assimilating selective international practices, is mirrored in Jamini Roy's figuration of the three pretty maids or his Santhal carver. Noteworthy are the markings and symbols in the borders around his puppet like figures in flat colours. The work is clearly impacted by the folk arts and Kalighat Patua (rural art form of West Bengal) repertoire of his native place. In yet another strand appears AA Raiba's narrative compositions titled Barahmasa (twelve months/seasons of the year) in one case and untitled in another. The fantasy-filled work draws its inspiration from Pahari (art style practiced in and around the mountains in Himachal) and Mughal miniature painting while younger artist Bhairavi Modi's art, though in different renditions, shares an interest in regional styles as reflected in her depiction of scenes and stories as enacted by some of her protagonists. Narratives surrounding people and life in urban and rural India or those based on classical or folk stories are at the center-stage in distinct work by distinguished artists Bhupen Khakhar, NS Bendre and Satish Gujral. Minimalist ethereal impressionistic compositions and Zen ambience comes to the fore in abstract and geometric renditions by some of the featured artists. It includes work by artists who were or have been based in the West, while simultaneously keeping their links with the sub-continent alive. A distinct ethnic touch within a glo-cal genre is reflected in their abstraction that treads both the worlds.
Leading in this group is artist SH Raza who was based in Paris until his last few years and renowned for his work marked for its spiritual essence. Bindu (dot) and Prakriti (nature) are at the center stage in his colourful compositions encompassing circles, triangles, squares and half circles. A dot within a rhythmic pattern of circles, triangles and squares says it all, in Raza's oeuvre. His contemporary from London, Balraj Khanna's amazing white circular painting, features what reminds one of instruments, machine parts, or space creatures in contrast. This resonance of an otherworldly abstraction or neti-neti (neither this nor that) ambience is echoed in his multi-coloured painting featuring forms akin to toys, puppets and zebra like creatures. Also included in the grouping is banker cum artist Nayan Kisnadwala's work. His abstract paintings bordering on the tantric feature blooms and Shaligram (lingam). Inspired by colour therapy and numerology the works create a web of spirals, lines and circles imbued with spiritual undertones. Master artist Ram Kumar's peaceful landscape in subtle colours entails markings suggestive of trees mountains rivers and paths while J Swaminathan's landscape in a more colourful and seductive composition features a series of mountains with his trademark bird atop a mound and a lonesome tree in the distance. A contrast of sorts appears in brightly rendered landscapes by Nabibakhsh Mansoori that engage the viewer in a guftgu (conversation) in one work suggestive of mountains, rivers, horizon and fields while the other reverberates with an impression of a mirage. Sridhar Poluru evokes a different image of the landscape in a mix of man animal and flora fauna while Paresh Maity's landscape with water, boats and habitation appears in a poetic stance. Popular culture with a touch of the cinematic and kitsch is played up in work by artists Dileep Sharma, and Nayanaa Kanodia, each shifting the focus to take in their current experiences surrounded by Bollywood and Mumbai society. The lady in a mini skirt and high heels appears with cropped small figures dancing atop and around her, in scissors; while in flying squad she adorns swimming costumes with high heels, jewelry and cosmetics as a tiny aircraft appears in a
corner bottom of the painting by Dileep Sharma. In Nayanaa Kanodia's paintings the magic of Moscow is being painted as a self-portrait by the lady as her pet dog watches from behind. The madam is shown in another picturesque composition seated and regally dressed up, possibly waiting for her man to come home. The two-some later appear in another composition under a flowering tree, relaxing on a sofa, the man comforting and pressing her feet. MF Husain who had embarked on his artistic career as a billboard painter, comes in the lead in this genre. A touch of the Bollywood dynamics and popular Indian culture can be traced in much of his colourful imagery be it running horses or semi-urban scenes of cuddled individuals. There is another group of artists who travel and work across the continents, borders and genres. What they create tends to be universal in its ethos and engaging in its content, while articulating observations of the world as they see it. Suchi Chidambaram's dusk at Milbank represents the energy, architecture and glitz of the cityscape that she inhabits. Vinita Karim's labyrinth of the cities in contrast focuses on waterways and lakes of the cities she has traversed through,
as it also raises issues around conservation of the natural resource. In another mode appears the work by New York based multidisciplinary artist Raghava KK who combines technology with art as in the batik like finish on his iconic figuration. The vividh (multiple) collection illustrates the versatility within the genre of painting, entailing variable expressions in different media and modes as practiced across the country. Each artist creates the work in own distinct form, style, palette, material, size, technique, and thrust, ranging from oil or acrylic on canvas, to watercolours on paper, from tapestry in silk to egg tempera on board, from mixed media on hard surface to embroidery and gold/copper on canvas, from gouache on paper to watercolours mixed with acrylic on canvas. The plural ensemble presents an overview of the contemporary Indian art scene. Reflective of the country's enormous ethnic, linguistic, geographical, political and cultural diversity, the artists can be seen to re-imagine and re-configure their ideas, dreams and encounters, into fine works of art that make this vividh collection.
Sushma K. Bahl, MBE, author of 5000 Years of Indian Art in English and Chinese editions, besides other books, and former Head, Arts & Culture, British Council India; is an independent arts adviser, writer and curator based in Delhi. Recipient of British Honour MBE, she is a member of the Paris based International Association of Art Critics (AICA) and a trustee/advisory committee member of Abhyas Trust and Kala Sakshi Trust, both in Delhi, Arts Acre Foundation in Kolkata, Harjai Global Gurukul in Mumbai, and Kerala Museum in Kochi. sushmakbahl@gmail.com/ 15.09.2016
ART WOR KS
A A RAIBA
Barhmasa | Oil on canvas | 44" x 132"
Untitled | Oil on canvas | 36" x 17"
B PRABHA
Untitled | Oil on canvas | 39" x 40"
BALRAJ KHANNA
Sunset Symphony | Acrylic on canvas | 45" x 45"
The Great White Tondo 4 | Mixed media
BHAIRAVI MODI
An old man-gusto | Water colour on paper | 40" x 30"
A ladder-awry | Water colour on paper | 40" x 30"
BHUPEN KHAKHAR
Untitled | Charcoal & Water Colour on Paper | 21" x 15"
DILEEP SHARMA
Flying Squad | Water colour on paper | 66" x 44"
Scissors-5/Leg series | Water colour on paper | 43" x 32"
F N SOUZA
The Cross | Mixed media on board | 24" x 18"
J SWAMINATHAN
Mountain & Bird | Oil on canvas | 32" x 48"
JAMINI ROY
Sanathal carver | Tempera on Board | 16" x 12"
Three Sister | Mixed media on board | 19" x 12"
K G SUBRAMANYAN
Untitled | Acrylic on canvas | 24" x 18"
M F HUSAIN
Horse | Oil on canvas | 25" x 18" Two Horses | Oil on canvas | 34" x 46"
HMV | Water Colour on Paper | 16" x 20"
N S BENDRE
Village | Mixed media on paper | 7" x 10"
NABIBAKHSH MANSOORI
Guftgu, (Conversation) | Oil on canvas | 40" x 25"
Mirage-III | Oil on canvas | 42" x 24"
NAYAN KISNADWALA
Blossoming of a Lotus Flower Gouache on paper | 16" x 16"
The First Bloom Gouache on paper | 16" x 16"
Rangin Shaligram | Egg Tempura on Paper | 18" x 16"
NAYANAA KANODIA
Memsahib Oil on canvas | 40" x 20"
Under the Tree of Life Oil on canvas | 48" x 36"
The Magic of Moscow Oil on canvas | 48" x 36"
PARESH MAITY
Untitled | Oil on canvas | 46" x 46"
RAGHAVA K K
Ganesh | Watercolour & Acrylic on canvas | 53" x 41"
RAM KUMAR
Landscape | Oil on canvas | 43" x 60"
S G VASUDEV
Ganesh -1 | Tapestry | 40" x 30"
He | Acrylic on canavs | 21" x 14"
She | Acrylic on canavs | 21" x 14"
S H RAZA
Prakriti | Acrylic on canvas | 48" x 48"
Bindu | Acrylic on canvas | 48" x 48"
SHANTI PANCHAL
About a Boy | Watercolour on paper | 40" x 32"
Maya's long Hair | Watercolour on paper | 40" x 32"
SRIDHAR POLURU
Motherhood | Acrylic on canvas | 42" x 48"
SUCHI CHIDAMBARAM
Dusk, Millbank | Oil on canvas | 60" x 60"
VINITA KARIM
The Blue Lagoon Acrylic, embroidery, gold and copper leaf on canvas | 40" x 40"
Lakes of gold Acrylic, embroidery, gold and copper leaf on canvas | 20" x 30"
ART ISTS
A A RAIBA AA Raiba, (1922- 2016) full name Abdul Aziz Raiba, was born in Bombay. He studied painting at the Sir JJ School of Art in the city. A master artist of great repute Raiba started painting professionally in the early 1950s and continued working into his 80s though during the last few years of his life due to poor health, his movement were restricted and he could not paint much. Characterised by bold shapes, strong outlines, and sophisticated colour, his canvases present surrealist portraits and imagery mixed with markers of landscapes often with a naive perspective. Winner of several honours from the Bombay Art Society including the Gold, Bronze and Silver Medals, he painted in oil on canvas and also worked on several large murals for clients including Air India and Ashoka Hotel. His work has been shown in many exhibitions and his paintings are held in the collections at the Cairo Museum, Egypt, Nagpur Museum, and the National Gallery of Modern Art in Delhi.
BALRAJ KHANNA Born 1940, Balraj Khanna, lived and studied in Punjab until 1962 when he shifted to Britain, initially for further studies in English Literature at Oxford University. However, his circumstances changed and he made UK his home and took to painting instead of studying literature. The self-taught artist's work comes with distinct spiritual undertones. It embraces abstraction and figuration in a fine assimilation of the East and the West. The use of sand, a nostalgic element and a hallmark of his work, connects him to his Indian roots. The repetitive forms in a mixed palette are reflective of Western discipline in his approach to work. The tall silver haired multitalented gentleman, is a writer, a curator and an artist in equal measure. His checkered career started with a stint as a correspondent, and includes execution of significant commissions of murals and paintings for public and private institutions. He lectures on art at universities and museums in the UK, has curated exhibitions such as Kalighat Paintings, Krishna- The Divine Lover, 2000 Years of Indian Sculpture, and 60 Years of British Art 1945-2006 touring exhibitions for the Hayward Gallery, and has authored four novels amongst much else. His work has been exhibited in numerous solo and group shows in Britain and elsewhere. He founded the Horizon Gallery in London and was the Chairman of the Indian Arts Council in the UK. Balraj Khanna has been a member of various committees including the Arts Council of Great Britain, South Bank Centre and Hayward Gallery. Awards to his credit include the Winifred Holtby Memorial Prize for his first novel Nation of Fools. The artist is based in London and works from his studio in the city.
BHAIRAVI MODI Bhairavi Modi born in 1980 in Gujarat, studied commerce and passed her master's in commerce before undertaking a diploma in drawing and painting from Sheth CN College of Fine Arts in Ahmedabad. In pursuit of her passion for art she went on to learn more and passed post-diploma course in creative painting from MS university, Baroda. Painting and creating art is a source of joy for the artist whose work is inspired by nature and the happenings around her. Her narratives appear in a mix of people, events and landscape in dense imagery and bold colours. Her works have been exhibited in solo and group shows held in galleries at Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Canada, London, Bhopal, Hyderabad, New Delhi and Baroda. They are held in private, institutional and corporate collections in India and abroad.
BHUPEN KHAKHAR Bhupen Khakhar (1934- 2003) born in Mumbai studied accountancy at the University of Mumbai and learnt to paint later in life, working on his own. Based in Vadodara, he became a leading Indian artist internationally recognised for his bold figuration and evocative narratives painted in details. With their focus on gender identity including homosexuality, his compositions contained references to mythological as well as contemporary themes. Much of his repertoire including paintings in oils and watercolours, mixed media and graffiti, is themed around common people and is autobiographical in its essence. Since his first show in 1965, Bhupen's paintings and drawings have been compared with David Hockney's work and exhibited in various Indian towns as well as in London, Berlin and Tokyo. Recipient of Prince Claus Award and Padma Shri among other honours, his work is held in important collections including the National gallery of Modern Art in Delhi, British Museum and Tate gallery in London and Museum of Modern Art in New York.
DILEEP SHARMA Born 1974 at Mandawar in Rajasthan, Dileep Sharma did his graduation in art from the Rajasthan School of Art in Jaipur and Master's Degree in printmaking from Sir J. J. School of Art in Mumbai. He refined his skills further by attending series of workshops and residencies. His repertoire encompasses prints, drawings and watercolours mostly on paper that make dramatic pictorial narratives about contemporary society with a touch of satire. Under his pseudonym Kunwarji his adventures extend to include a heady mix of pop culture, sexuality and socio political issues as reflected in an interface between ethnic mythologies and urban life today. There is a clear influence of miniature painting and folk arts with fun underpinning his densely
rendered work that includes divergent subjects from religious icons to mundane objects. Dileep's colourful motifs within images- coupled and cropped, fragmented and inter mixed; make a satire on our fleeting world dominated by media and advertisements. Exhibited in several solo and group shows across Indian metros as well as internationally including London, Seoul, Dhaka and Vienna, the artist has received Honorable Mention Award at 6th International Biennial of Print at Bharat Bhavan, Bhopal amongst others. He lives in Mumbai and works out of his studio in the city.
F N SOUZA FN Souza (1924 – 2002) full name Francis Newton Souza was born in Goa and studied at the Sir J.J. School of Art in Mumbai. One of the founding members and main ideologue of the Progressive Artists Group along with S.H. Raza, M.F Husain and K.H. Ara, among others, Souza was the first post-independence Indian artist to achieve recognition in the West. An articulate genius, his canvases are provocative and powerful. His images emerged from his unrestrained and graphic style of drawing and painting. The subjects are wide ranging - still life, landscape, nudes and icons of Christianity. The compositions appear in a frenzied distortion of bold forms, as expressions of his defiance and impatience with conventions. His works reflect influence of various schools of art; the folk art of his native Goa on the one hand and the religious fervor of the Catholic Church on the other, the landscapes of Europe and the path-breaking paintings of the moderns. Souza's work has been exhibited all over the world including Gallery Creuze, Paris, Arts 38, London, and at Bose Pacia Modern, New York, it is part of collections at the Tate Gallery, London and the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi amongst others.
J SWAMINATHAN J Swaminathan (1928- 1994) full name Jagadish Swaminathan, born in Simla was a leading Indian artist, painter, poet and writer, guru to many artists of today. Marked for its pristine simplicity his imagery including graphic prints and oil paintings, turns captivating given his choice of vivid colours and well ordered geometry and selective use of symbols. There is a distinct influence of the tribal arts in the way he used his fingers for applying pigments. Swaminathan studied graphics at the Academy of Fine Arts, in Warsaw, Poland. An active member of the Communist Party of India, he was also one of the founding members of Group 1890, and wrote its manifesto. An influential artist he was awarded the Jawaharlal Nehru Fellowship and was instrumental in setting up the art museum 'Roopankar' at the Bharat Bhavan in Bhopal of which he was the director for several years. He is credited with discovering and bringing into the limelight some of the finest modern day Gond and Bhil tribal artists including
the famous Jangarh Singh Shyam. In addition to supporting others, he continued to paint, and participated in numerous solo and group exhibitions. His work was exhibited during the Tokyo Biennale and the first International Triennale India. He was on the international jury for the SĂŁo Paulo Biennale and his work can be seen in important public and private collections in India and abroad.
JAMINI ROY Jamini Roy (1887- 1972) was born at Beliatpore in West Bengal. He studied at the University of Calcutta and trained as a painter. One of the famous pupils of Abanindranath Tagore, he learnt in the prevailing academic tradition drawing classical nudes and painting impressionist landscapes in oils but soon started to draw inspiration from the living folk and tribal art of Bengal particularly the Kalighat Pat style. An important artist of the Bengal School, his experimentations began with paintings of the Santhal dancers in bold sweeping brush-strokes embodying simplicity with beauty. The imagery later expanded to include varied themes including people such as rural maids, brides, mother and child, workers, animals and birds. He created a large body of impressive work that has been exhibited in numerous shows across India and the world including London, New York and Paris. His paintings are held in significant collections and museums such as the National Gallery of Modern Art in Delhi and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Honoured with a Padma Bhushan in 1954, he has contributed significantly to the emergence of modern Indian art.
K G SUBRAMANYAN K G Subramanyan (1924- 2016) was born in Kuthuparamba, Kerala. He trained in art initially at Kala Bhavan, Santiniketan which was followed by further study first at the Slade School of Art in London on a British Council Scholarship and then in the USA on a Rockefeller fellowship. He taught for decades at India's two landmark art centers– Baroda Faculty of Fine Arts and Santiniketan; thus influencing many generations of artists. He was involved in the struggle for independence, and spent six months in jail. His contribution to the development of handloom and handicrafts in the country as a design consultant for nearly two decades is also noteworthy. Subramanyan experimented with a wide variety of media- painting on canvas and glass, sculptures, murals and reliefs in terracotta, cement and wood, tapestry and weavings, and toys and illustrations for children's books. His folk inspired work spanning over six decades includes colourful and narrative imagery that intertwines the wicked with innocent to create amazing art full of fun and substance. A sense of continuity and tradition pervades his delineation while his writings on art and artistic practices make engaging readings on culture. A Padam Shri
awardee, K G as he was popularly known was also recipient of the Christensen Fellowship at St. Catherine's College Oxford, Professor Emeritus at Visva Bharti, Santiniketan and LKA Kala Ratna and Ravi Varma Award amongst others. This eminent artist's work has been exhibited in numerous important shows in various parts of the world including at Asian Artists' Exhibition in Japan, Six Indian Painters at Tate Gallery, London, a retrospective at the National Gallery of Modern Art in Delhi besides nearly 50 other solo shows in Delhi, Bombay, Bangalore, Chennai, Santiniketan, New York and Oxford. Subramanyan represented India at prestigious international Biennales.
M F HUSAIN M.F. Husain (1915- 2011) full name Maqbool Fida Husain, also spelt as Hussain, was born at Pandharpur in Maharashtra. Popularly known as MF Husain, he is one of India's world famous painters. He learnt the art of calligraphy and the Kulfic Khat and wrote poetry at a young age. Studied art briefly, first at the Indore Art College and then at Sir J. J. School of Art in Mumbai, where he worked on designing furniture and making toys as well as a billboard painter for cinema hoardings to sustain himself. It is this varied experience and rigor that endowed his work its special artistic oeuvre. There is a simplicity enshrined in the enigmatic style, vibrant colours and accessible imagery that this multi-faceted and special individual created in bold and quick brush strokes. Well grounded in the traditional roots and fiercely open to the contemporary, external or experimental, his masterpiece creations about life, society and the world around – people, nudes, horses, Mother Teresa, religious icons, landscapes and other forms of imagery, all assume a distinct and luminous representation even though their faces bear no features! His enormous body of work also includes series of paintings on the British Raj, on the cities of Calcutta, Benares, Rome and Beijing, Epics of Mahabharata and Ramayana, religions of the world and his favourite Bollywood stars. His repertoire also includes murals, portraits, photographs, design work and film direction including 'Through the Eyes of a Painter', 'Gaja Gamini' and 'Meenaxi: A Tale of Three Cities' the former winning the Golden Bear Award at the Berlin Film Festival. Invited to Sao Paulo Biennial along with Pablo Picasso, his work has been shown in numerous seminal art expositions held all over the country and the world. Honoured as Padma Vibhushan by the President of India amongst other awards, he was also a nominated as a member of the Rajya Sabha. His work can be seen at significant collections including Ebrahim Alkazi and NGMA Delhi, Jehangir Nicholson Mumbai, Masanori Fukuoka and Glenbarra Museum in Japan and Chester and Davida Herwtiz in USA. With homes and studios in several cities, Hussain lived his last few years in exile, shuttling between Dubai and London.
N S BENDRE N. S. Bendre (1910 - 1992) full name Narayan Shridhar Bendre was born in Indore, and attended the State Art School in the city before shifting to Bombay for further study in Art. A multitalented artist, the legendary painter and master colourist was also a composer and social crusader whose work has left deep imprints on contemporary Indian art scene. Starting his career as a painter and journalist for the government of Kashmir when he created sketches of the scenic landscapes of the Himalayan valley, he moved to Madras for a short stint as an art director. This was followed by a decade of teaching as a lecturer, then head and finally the Dean in Painting Department at Baroda's Faculty of Fine Arts before turning to fulltime painting as a freelance artist based in Bombay. His wide ranging repertoire included landscapes, portraits in oils and gouache, murals and wall paintings. Marked for its academic and cubist impressionist stance, his art-scape experimented with pointillism and combined formal Indian themes with mainstream European modernism. He came in touch with other legendary masters of Bengal during his tenure as an artist in residence at Santiniketan and was a member of the Progressive Artists Group (PAG). He traveled extensively in India and abroad, and his work has been exhibited in major shows and is part of significant museum collections internationally. Honoured with the Padmashri and Padmabhushan awards from the President of India, he also received Silver and Gold Medals from the Bombay Art Society besides Lalit Kala Akademi and Kalidas Samman amongst others.
NABIBAKHSH MANSOORI Born 1966 at Idar in Gujarat, Nabibakhsh Mansoori Diploma holder in drawing and painting from C.N. College of Fine Arts at Ahmedabad followed it up with a Post Diploma in Fine Arts from the M.S. University at Baroda. Starting with a job as an art teacher, he now paints as a freelance full time artist. His work stands out for its juxtaposition of the mundane with the quirky, facts with fiction, animate with inanimate, man with animal, whole with a part and abstract with narrative. Endowed with a lithe flow of forms and lines, the intricately layered imagery comes in splintered-dreamy-dramatic-surreal colourful compositions as well as in charcoal drawings and some installations. Nabi's work has been exhibited in numerous exhibitions including solos held at Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Surat, Delhi, Dubai and London besides in several group shows including the Asian Art Biennale at Dhaka and 44th National Art Exhibition in Delhi besides auctions held by Sotheby's and Bonham's in London. He assisted M.F. Husain, and has participated in various art camps and workshops besides contributing to charity shows including Pratham UK and Christies London. Recipient of numerous awards notable amongst which are Bendre Husain scholarship bestowed by Bombay Art Society,
Gujarat State Lalit Kala Academi Award, Fellowship of the Ministry of Human Resources Development and South Zone Cultural Centre Nagpur, his work is held in renowned corporate and public collections including the Reliance and RPG in Mumbai, Barry Underwood in Australia, City Museum of Ahmedabad and Brent Eidson at Houston. The artist lives in Gandhinagar, Gujarat and works from his studio in the city.
NAYAN KISNADWALA Nayan V. Kisnadwala a banker by profession, took to painting later in life, re-ignited by his passion for art that had laid dormant for decades as he worked to make a living. Signing his works as Nayanmitra, a name given to him by his spiritual teacher, Her Holiness Anant Sri Vibhusit Pratham Parvatyacharya GuruMaa J Saraswati, the work is his homage to the guru. Drawing from symbolism and inspired by scriptures, his art engages with colour therapy and numerology to create positive vibrations. Meditative in essence he contributes all sale proceeds from his art for various charitable causes.
NAYANAA KANODIA Born 1950 in Pune, Nayanaa Kanodia completed her graduation in Economics from Delhi University before her foray into art for which she underwent a year's apprenticeship with Anjolie Ela Menon. Over the last few decades, she continues to work on her own refining and evolving her technique further. Nayanaa's canvases and paper works that include oils and gouache attempt to express the bipolarity, typical of contemporary Indian society standing at the crossroads. She depicts people- Gujarati, Parsis and Mumbaikars and their everyday life and street scenes in a joyful, chatty and satirical way with a remarkable attention to detail, almost like photo-features. Amongst the few Indian artists practicing 'Naive Art', Nayanaa's portraits and scenes turn evocative brimming with humour, spice and colour. There are street vendors, flower sellers, Bollywood stars and images from her city that appear in a curious mix of charm and theatricality. Nayanaa's work has been exhibited widely in over 20 solo and many more group-shows at leading art spaces in India and abroad, including London, Washington, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Paris. She lives and works in Mumbai.
PARESH MAITY Born in 1965 in Tamluk, Paresh Maity spent his early childhood in rural Bengal. He moved to Kolkata for his Bachelor's degree in art from the Government College of Art & Craft and then to the capital for his Master's degree from the Delhi College of Art, specializing in painting and winning gold medals for both. A rare excellence in transparent watercolors, in large or small format, that capture the nuances of light and shade mark his masterly skill in the medium. His creativity extends to include paintings in oils and mixed media that form a large part of his impressive body of work, to which he has added some installations more recently. An avid traveler, excellent photographer, skilled designer, and a great storyteller, Paresh works not just in landscapes or figuration but also abstraction, and has made several sculptures and films as well. Marked for its finesse and romanticism, much of his work comes with a touch of folklore. His repertoire and career, that spans nearly a 100 solo and group shows in India and abroad, including at the Cleveland International Drawing Biennale, Indian Triennial, Indian and Singapore Art fairs, has been documented in a couple of large, illustrated books. Honoured with a Padam Shri, he is also a recipient of the Royal Watercolor Society Award in London, Governor's Gold Medal in Kolkata and AIFACS Award in Delhi. His work is held in numerous private and public collections including the British Museum London and the National Gallery of Modern Art Delhi. Paresh lives in Delhi and works from his studio in the city.
RAGHAVA K K Raghava K.K. born in 1980 in Bangalore, is an artist who works in multiple disciplines and genres ranging from making cartoons to painting, film making, installation, digital and performance art. Conceptually his work engages with construct of identity, gender and sexuality, and the absence of interpersonal context in today's world with its focus on online identity. Raghava has been named as one of the 10 most fascinating people the world by the CNN. His work has featured in exhibitions and projects held in India and other parts of the world including an invited show at the Carre d' Art Musee d'Art Contemporain for the city of NĂŽmes in 2010. A sought after lecturer he has been a TED speaker and given talks at New York University, New Hampshire Institute of Art, Long Beach, CA. and the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in France. His interactive iPad app, which promotes open-mindedness lunched recently has been exhibited at Art Stage Singapore and India Art Fair. The artist lives and works in Brooklyn, NY.
RAM KUMAR Born 1924 in Simla Ram Kumar did his Master's Degree in Economics from Delhi University but turned to art and joined the Sarada Ukil School of Art, in the city when he began to participate in group exhibitions, where he was spotted by Raza who later became a close friend. Among the first generation of post-colonial artists who helped forge an Indian identity though their aesthetics and sans any iconic representation, Ram Kumar's work stands tall. In a juxtaposition of what has been described as 'outward joy together with an inward reticence', the legendry artist's work offers a sensual pleasure, even nirvana in its colours and haze of forms that recall the tranquil landscapes of Simla- its mountains and horizon, and the bustling cityscapes of Varanasi- its temples and holy river. Ram Kumar's stringent geometric forms are diligently textured and painted in layers to give his work its distinctive appearance. His work has been exhibited and collected extensively all over India and internationally. Ram Kumar lives in Delhi and works from his studio at home.
S G VASUDEV Born in Mysore Karnataka in 1941, S.G. Vasudev is an alumnus of Madras College of Art and one of the founder member of Cholamandal Artists' Village on the outskirts of Chennai in Tamilnadu. A painter who works in varied media including drawing, metal relief and tapestry amongst others, Vasudev has created a large body of work. Themed around Vriksha (Tree of Life), Maithuna (Act of Love), faces, Human-scapes, Earth-scapes and Theatre of Life besides others, his art comes in an interesting mix of tradition and modernity and in series. His techniques range from metal beating and casting to painterly compositions that also include mythological themes. Winner of National and State awards, his work has featured in several important group exhibitions including the Triennale India, the Paris Biennale, the Havana Biennale, National Gallery of Modern Art Indian show in Washington, the Festival of India in Tokyo and The New South – Contemporary Painting & Sculpture from South India in London. His solo shows have been held in different parts of India and in Canada, the USA and Germany while his drawings based on the late A.K. Ramanujan's poetry and translations, titled Tribute to Ramanujan, has toured Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, London and Chicago. His work including murals adorn many individual, institutional and corporate collections in India and overseas. He worked as the art director for two award-winning Kannada films, has been on the Executive Board of the Lalit Kala Akademi, and the advisory committee of the National Gallery of Modern Art. Vasudev a socially committed artist, is the founder and Managing Trustee of Arnawaz Vasudev Charities that gives financial assistance to young artists. He lives in Bangalore and works from his studio on the outskirts of the city.
S H RAZA S. H. Raza (1922- 2016) full name Syed Haider Raza was born in Madhya Pradesh. He studied painting at the School of Art in Nagpur and Mumbai's Sir JJ School of Art. One of the greatest icons of Contemporary Indian Art and a founder member of the Progressive Artists Group, Raza as he was popularly known, moved to Paris in 1950 to study at Ecole Nationale des Beaux-Arts with a French Government scholarship. And Paris became his home for several decades before he shifted his base to Delhi. Raza's oeuvre is marked for its spiritual essence, its myriad colours and abstraction. The vague suggestions of a landscape of his childhood amidst rustic rural ambience of MP that can be seen in his early works, began to fade away and became subtle as the artist turned inward. The rendezvous with simple elementary geometric forms, symbols and metaphors including 'Bindu' i.e. a dot or circle appeared in luminous reds, blues and other colours in his canvases rotating around a focal point often symbolic of male-female polarity bordering on the tantric. The legendary artist successfully retained the energy and spirit of the land of his birth, and added to it a technical finesse resulting from his Western training and exposure. Raza contributed to several cultural trusts and initiatives in India and France that continue to support promising young artists to showcase their work internationally. His own work has been exhibited in countless individual and group shows including the International Biennales at Venice, Sao Paolo, Manton and Triennale India. Awards conferred on him included the Prix de la Critique in Paris, the Kalidas Samman by the government of Madhya Pradesh and the Lalit Kala Ratna and Padma Shri by the President of India. His work is held in important Indian and international public and private collections including the National Gallery of Modern Art, Jehangir Art Gallery Mumbai and Bharat Bhavan Bhopal.
SATISH GUJRAL Born 1925 at Jhelum in Punjab, Satish Gujral studied at Mayo School of Art in Lahore followed by further study at JJ School of Art in Bombay at a time when it was under the influential surge of Progressive Artists Group. A fellowship in South America at an early stage in his career left a deep impression on the artist's mind though he has resiliently retained his own style to give Indian modernism his individual touch and iconography. Satish Gujral is a versatile artist and a living legend in the art scene of post independence India. His early years of solitude due to a hearing impairment together with the trauma of India's partition were reflected in his initial figurative work that often featured people burdened by the tough circumstances of their life. The experimental nature and emotive quality of his work in sculptures, paintings, collages and murals are the distinctive features of Satish Gujral's amazing creative array. His play with material and form ranges from ordinary people occupied in their routine work to iconic themes and figures, in paintings or sculptures in ceramics, burnt wood or other material. His
experiments in varied artistic expressions extend to include graphics, interior design and architecture as they engage with interesting decorative patterns. The artist has been the subject of several publications including an autobiography and dozens of films. His sculptures and murals adorn important buildings in Delhi while his work has been exhibited around India and the world including a major retrospective at the NGMA Delhi. Recipient of National and International honours, his repertoire includes 'Padma Vibhushan' awarded by the President of India, 'Order of the Crown' by the Belgian Government, three times National as well as LKA Ratna and more recently Order of the Aztec Eagle conferred by the Mexican President. Satish Gujral lives in Delhi and works from his studio in the city.
SHANTA SAMANT Shanta Samant born in 1975 in West Bengal, trained in art and passed her BFA and then MFA both in sculpture from MS University in Vadodara. Working mostly in bronze her work encompasses human form and its dynamics. Male and female figures in delicate posturing entail body movement adding to the dramatic effect in her formations and compositions. Shanta's artworks have been exhibited in solo and group shows held in Mumbai, Ahmadabad, Baroda, Kolkata, Pune, Bangalore and Delhi besides London, Dubai and Hong Kong. It is part of important corporate and private collections. Shanta has also undertaken projects on ecology and sustainability. She is based in Vadodara where she is Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Fine Arts in MS University.
SHANTI PANCHAL Born 1951 at Mesar in Gujarat, Shanti Panchal studied art at Sir JJ School of Art in Mumbai where he also worked on a fellowship for a year before taking up a teaching assignment at Sophia College Polytechnic in the city. Further study at the Byam Shaw School of Art in London on a British Council Scholarship directed his future track that included three successive stints as an Artist-in-residence at the British Museum in London, Harris Museum at Preston and the Winsor & Newton Art Factory in London before he decided to settle in the British capital. Shanti's art is marked for distinctive and subtle compositions. His cleverly drawn and positioned figuration makes captivating narratives. His understanding of Indian folk forms coupled with his study of European traditions gives the male and female forms in his compositions a fluidity and depth in palette. Though he also works in oils and acrylics, Shanti's preferred medium is water colours on paper that he has mastered. The imagery extends beyond
landscapes to include narratives. Focusing on issues around displacement in his realistic and firmly grounded work, he treats the world as a stage. The artist's work has been exhibited in numerous exhibitions all over the UK, Europe and elsewhere. it is part of significant public and private collections including the Arts Council of England, Birmingham Museum, British Museum, Imperial War Museum, Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool and Ruth Borchard Self-Portrait Collection, London. Shanti lives in London and works out of his studio in the city.
SRIDHAR POLURU Sridhar Poluru born in 1968 in Andhra Pradesh, India studied science and did his B.Sc. from Nagarjuna University, before turning to art and passed his Bachelor's Degree in Fine Art in first rank from Andhra University. He worked at Kanoria Centre for Arts in Ahmedabad. The painter's work comes in multimedia. With charcoal on textile and acrylic on canvas his imagery focusses on different subjects. The themes vary from day to day life, gender issues such as women's empowerment, sati, child marriage, girl education and environmental concerns though he has also created work featuring divine forms and mythology. His work has been featured in exhibitions held in India. Sridhar currently lives in Ahmedabad, Gujarat and works from his studio at home.
SUCHI CHIDAMBARAM Suchi Chidambaram who has her family roots in Southern India shifted her base to London in 1998 where she is based now. Primarily a self taught artist she paints in oil on canvas. Her imagery offers views of the cities, people, and architecture that she has travelled through. It absorbs stories that she comes across and the experiences she encounters. The compositions are not painted in situ, but triggered by her memory of the places, often driven by emotions as they capture the underlined mood and the narrative. She uses palette knife besides brushes for her thick impressionistic textured strokes to reveal the rhythm and movement of the people and the places, shifting between abstract and figurative forms. Her work has been part of shows held in India and in Europe from where it has found its way into private and corporate collections. Suchi lives and works in London.
VINITA KARIM Vinita Karim born 1962, studied Science and Business Administration in Sweden before taking up a course in Fine Arts at the University in Philippines. This multinational expose, work experience and travels through Asia, the Middle East and Europe gets reflected in her gilt-leafed canvases that are set amidst un-named lands and life/s, some real others imagined. Sans any physical human presence, her colourful compositions breathe meaning and life. The layered work seems to rotate around life lines of waters, in cities with significant sea histories and geographies. Vinita is a prolific artist whose work has been exhibited in 23 solo exhibitions and many more group shows in India and internationally, including the art fairs held in Delhi, Dubai, Dhaka, Canada and other parts of the globe from where it has been picked up by discerning collectors. The artist lives and works between Delhi and Dhaka or wherever her travels take her.
Sushma K. Bahl, author of 5000 Years of Indian Art in English and Chinese editions, besides other books, and former Head, Arts & Culture, British Council India; is an independent arts adviser, writer and curator based in Delhi. Recipient of British Honour MBE, she is a member of the Paris based International Association of Art Critics (AICA) and a trustee/advisory committee member of Abhyas Trust and Kala Sakshi Trust, both in Delhi, Arts Acre Foundation in Kolkata, Harjai Global Gurukul in Mumbai, and Kerala Museum in Kochi.
sushmakbahl@gmail.com / Sep. 2016
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We would like to acknowledge and thank several people for their contribution towards Vividh exhibition. Sushma K Bahl for breathing life into the exhibition with her essay and description of Vividh; Prateeq Kumar for adding colour and form by designing the invitations and catalogue. Thanks to Damson Communications for their support and expertise.
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