Search results for: 'Books on the visual hi'

Born in 1907, Gobardhan Ash came into his own as an artist at a time when Indian art was in a state of historical flux, when the imagination of young artists was infused with the spirit of country’s freedom from colonial rule. He trained at the Government College of Art in Calcutta from 1926-30, and at the Government School of Arts and Crafts, Madras, till 1932. He was an active member of various artist collectives such as the Calcutta Group that he joined in 1950, the Art Rebel Centre, and the Young Artists Union, of which he was a founder member. Learn More

Born into a prosperous Ceylonese family of Indo-Dutch origin, George Keyt spent his childhood in an environment where Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim, and European cultures commingled, a premise that would later appear in his work. A self-taught artist, Keyt’s success was unparalleled with many celebrities such as actor Vivian Leigh, writer Evelyn Waugh, poet Pablo Neruda, and photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson, among others, visiting him, his art, his exhibitions. Learn More

Born Gulam Rasool Dar in a Shia Muslim family in Srinagar in Kashmir on 20 June 1929, the artist took on his wife’s Hindu name ‘Santosh’ as his own, in a move opposing patriarchy and religion. His father’s death forced a young Gulam to work as a signboard painter, papier-mâché artist, and weaver. He learnt to paint watercolour landscapes from Dina Nath Raina in Kashmir before studying under N. S. Bendre at M. S. University, Baroda, on the recommendation of S. H. Raza. In Baroda, he produced a large body of figurative and landscape works, mainly in the cubist style. Learn More

Eric Bowen was born in Allahabad on 3 May 1929 and received a diploma from the College of Art, New Delhi, in 1959. Though he joined the short-lived Group 1890, his journey to be a part of the significant art movements in the 1960s took root when he and Paramjit Singh started the Group Unknown, a Delhi-based collective of young artists and sculptors. Learn More

A seminal and well-known contemporary Indian sculptor, Dhruva Mistry’s art, in his own words, is a ‘dialogue of an artist as a maker pursuing enigma of an omnipresent consciousness’. Learn More

Born in Lahore in British India, Dhanraj Bhagat acquired a diploma in sculpture from the city’s Mayo College of Art. He began working with clay while studying but it left him uninspired as he found little individuality in its amorphous nature. It was when he got his hands on wood with its uniquely tactile qualities that he felt inspired to carve and create. Learn More

Born on 11 April 1953 in Sangli, Maharashtra, Dattatraya Apte grew up in a culturally-charged household. His father was a teacher and used to make Ganehsa idols for puja at home, a skill that young Apte learnt early on. He also learnt to paint photographs and retouch negatives with an uncle who was a photographer. Learn More

Devi Prasad Roy Chowdhury was born in Tajhat (in present day Bangladesh) in 15 June 15 1899. He learnt painting from Abanindranath Tagore, life drawing and portraiture from E. Boyess, and sculpting from Hiranmoy Roychoudhuri, with later training in Italy. Equally at ease with plaster and paint, he evolved his skills in bronze casting, and executed paintings that were an amalgam of the Chinese technique, the Japanese wash process, and his own scratching method, though his early paintings bore Tagore’s influence. Learn More

Born to a family of artists in Kolhapur, Maharashtra, on 3 June 1890, Baburao Painter was a self-taught artist who excelled in both oil painting and sculpture. His skill in painting earned him the nickname ‘Painter’. His excellence in traditional sculpture is evident in the large statue he made of Mahatma Gandhi, installed in Kolhapur. Learn More

Born in Dacca (now Dhaka) in British India, Arun Bose was a pioneer printmaker who remained on the margins of mainstream Indian art as he built his career in the West, quite like Krishna Reddy, his senior contemporary who also mentored him briefly. Learn More

Born in Calcutta on 30 June 1959, Ananda Moy Banerji completed his B.F.A. in painting from the College of Art, New Delhi, in 1980, where he also studied printmaking under acclaimed printmaker Anupam Sud. Learn More

Akkitham Narayanan was born in Kerala to a family involved in conducting Vedic rituals. He obtained a diploma in painting from the Government College of Art and Craft, Madras, in 1961, where he studied under noted painter K. C. S. Panicker, who also helped him shape his art philosophy. Learn More