The search for abstraction in Indian art in the early years of Independence was born out of a desire among artists to attain an independent idiom of modernism. Rooted in the country’s philosophical and religious aesthetic, Prabhakar Kolte is among the leading practitioners engaged in this quest. A master of poetic and metaphysical abstractionism, Kolte received a diploma in painting from Sir J. J. School of Art, Bombay, in 1968. Initially, he freelanced as an illustrator, also working as a designer at Bombay Dyeing. Learn More
Well-known for his silkscreen prints, Paramjeet Singh was born and brought up in Jamshedpur in present-day Jharkhand where career prospects appeared limited to engineering or medicine. His parents hoped he would study architecture, but destiny had other plans as a friend took Singh to a local art class, which spurred his interest in drawing and painting. Learn More
Born in Calcutta, Nikhil Biswas was an indefatigable art activist and a firm believer in collective action. A founder member of Calcutta Painters Group, Chitrangshu Group, and Society of Contemporary Artists, Calcutta, Biswas was committed to bringing about technical innovations as well as transformations in contemporary artistic thought. Learn More
Globally renowned filmmaker Satyajit Ray called his photographer Nemai Ghosh ‘Boswell with a camera, instead of a pen’. Just like James Boswell’s biography of English writer Samuel Johnson is considered the finest in the language, Ghosh’s photo-biography of his mentor is one of the finest photo essays on a legend’s life; Ghosh was Ray’s photographer from 1968 until Ray’s death in 1992. Learn More
Born in Meerut, Navjot Altaf studied fine and applied arts at Sir J. J. School of Art, Bombay, from 1967-72. A painter, sculptor, installation artist, and filmmaker inspired by Marxist ideologies, Navjot has consciously questioned various frameworks of social norms and created art to bring focus to the plight of the depressed classes. Learn More
Born in Karachi, a year before it became part of Pakistan, Nalini Malani’s art, unsurprisingly, is built on observing the struggles and strife of people, socio-political changes, and how she observes this. More recently, the lockdown in India on account of the corona pandemic and its impact on migrant workers has impacted her work, even prompting her to post short animations on social media platforms. Learn More
Born in Gujarat to a family of farmers, Nagji Patel grew up making clay toys as part of playing with village children. He joined the painting course at Faculty of Fine Arts, M. S. University, Baroda, but eventually switched to sculpture, which he found less daunting than painting. He obtained an M.F.A. in sculpture in 1964 and in the same year won a travelling scholarship from the Government of India, which allowed him to visit quarries across the country and interact with stone carvers. Learn More
India’s first creatively trained printmaker and pioneer of dry point etching in the country, Mukul Chandra Dey was born on 23 July 1895 in Sridharkhola, Bengal. He joined Santiniketan’s Brahmacharya Ashram school at the age of eleven and trained in art under the Tagore family stalwarts, becoming a close associate of Abanindranath Tagore. Learn More
Born in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, Manu Parekh studied at Sir J. J. School of Art, Bombay. With influences as varied as Arshile Gorky, Roberto Matta, S. B. Palsikar and Rabindranath Tagore, Parekh has always sought to explore his inner landscape through art. Learn More
A watercolourist par excellence known for his paintings on silk, Maniklal Banerjee was born in Borisal in present-day Bangladesh. He studied at Government College of Art in Calcutta and while still a student, became the first Indian artist to receive the Government of India’s scholarship for the arts. Learn More
Possibly the most popular academic Indian artist after Raja Ravi Varma, M. V. Dhurandhar was born in Kolhapur. An early interest in drawing led his father to admit him to Sir J. J. School of Art, Bombay, where he received special encouragement from its principal, John Griffiths. Learn More
A. M. Mali was born in Kolhapur, Maharashtra, to a professional artist-father who painted mythological illustrations on the walls of local temples. Mali’s initial training in painting was under the well-known landscape artist Abalall Rahiman. Learn More
ArtistsPrabhakar Kolte$0.00The search for abstraction in Indian art in the early years of Independence was born out of a desire among artists to attain an independent idiom of modernism. Rooted in the country’s philosophical and religious aesthetic, Prabhakar Kolte is among the leading practitioners engaged in this quest. A master of poetic and metaphysical abstractionism, Kolte received a diploma in painting from Sir J. J. School of Art, Bombay, in 1968. Initially, he freelanced as an illustrator, also working as a designer at Bombay Dyeing. Learn More
ArtistsParamjeet Singh$0.00Well-known for his silkscreen prints, Paramjeet Singh was born and brought up in Jamshedpur in present-day Jharkhand where career prospects appeared limited to engineering or medicine. His parents hoped he would study architecture, but destiny had other plans as a friend took Singh to a local art class, which spurred his interest in drawing and painting. Learn More
ArtistsNikhil Biswas$0.00Born in Calcutta, Nikhil Biswas was an indefatigable art activist and a firm believer in collective action. A founder member of Calcutta Painters Group, Chitrangshu Group, and Society of Contemporary Artists, Calcutta, Biswas was committed to bringing about technical innovations as well as transformations in contemporary artistic thought. Learn More
ArtistsNemai Ghosh$0.00Globally renowned filmmaker Satyajit Ray called his photographer Nemai Ghosh ‘Boswell with a camera, instead of a pen’. Just like James Boswell’s biography of English writer Samuel Johnson is considered the finest in the language, Ghosh’s photo-biography of his mentor is one of the finest photo essays on a legend’s life; Ghosh was Ray’s photographer from 1968 until Ray’s death in 1992. Learn More
ArtistsNavjot$0.00Born in Meerut, Navjot Altaf studied fine and applied arts at Sir J. J. School of Art, Bombay, from 1967-72. A painter, sculptor, installation artist, and filmmaker inspired by Marxist ideologies, Navjot has consciously questioned various frameworks of social norms and created art to bring focus to the plight of the depressed classes. Learn More
ArtistsNalini Malani$0.00Born in Karachi, a year before it became part of Pakistan, Nalini Malani’s art, unsurprisingly, is built on observing the struggles and strife of people, socio-political changes, and how she observes this. More recently, the lockdown in India on account of the corona pandemic and its impact on migrant workers has impacted her work, even prompting her to post short animations on social media platforms. Learn More
ArtistsNagji Patel$0.00Born in Gujarat to a family of farmers, Nagji Patel grew up making clay toys as part of playing with village children. He joined the painting course at Faculty of Fine Arts, M. S. University, Baroda, but eventually switched to sculpture, which he found less daunting than painting. He obtained an M.F.A. in sculpture in 1964 and in the same year won a travelling scholarship from the Government of India, which allowed him to visit quarries across the country and interact with stone carvers. Learn More
ArtistsMukul Dey$0.00India’s first creatively trained printmaker and pioneer of dry point etching in the country, Mukul Chandra Dey was born on 23 July 1895 in Sridharkhola, Bengal. He joined Santiniketan’s Brahmacharya Ashram school at the age of eleven and trained in art under the Tagore family stalwarts, becoming a close associate of Abanindranath Tagore. Learn More
ArtistsManu Parekh$0.00Born in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, Manu Parekh studied at Sir J. J. School of Art, Bombay. With influences as varied as Arshile Gorky, Roberto Matta, S. B. Palsikar and Rabindranath Tagore, Parekh has always sought to explore his inner landscape through art. Learn More
ArtistsManiklal Banerjee$0.00A watercolourist par excellence known for his paintings on silk, Maniklal Banerjee was born in Borisal in present-day Bangladesh. He studied at Government College of Art in Calcutta and while still a student, became the first Indian artist to receive the Government of India’s scholarship for the arts. Learn More
ArtistsM. V. Dhurandhar$0.00Possibly the most popular academic Indian artist after Raja Ravi Varma, M. V. Dhurandhar was born in Kolhapur. An early interest in drawing led his father to admit him to Sir J. J. School of Art, Bombay, where he received special encouragement from its principal, John Griffiths. Learn More
ArtistsA. M. Mali$0.00A. M. Mali was born in Kolhapur, Maharashtra, to a professional artist-father who painted mythological illustrations on the walls of local temples. Mali’s initial training in painting was under the well-known landscape artist Abalall Rahiman. Learn More