Tag: modern indian artist

“In my paintings, I try to transform myself into the things that I paint, whether it is the radiant light or the darkest shadows. I surrender to the speed of the running deer or to the calmness, action or repose of the environment. I try to surrender to the object, whatever it may be, living, still or moving, and in this attempt, I feel the impulse of an eternal joy”

– Abani Sen

Abani Sen is regarded as one of the Old Masters of modern Indian painting. He was born in 1905 in Bengal, and taught and painted for 45 years until his dealth in 1972 in New Delhi. Throughout his long career he won many awards and recognition throughout India. He was awarded the Governor General’s Plaque in 1949.

His main contribution to Indian Art has been to bring about a change and to break through the Colonial Academic Painting by reviving the vital elements of native Indian tradition. He believed that it is in the folk tradition, the vast multitude of village population, that the main powerhouse of Indian art can be realized. Abani Sen taught Picasso, Cezanne, and Matisse to his students, but his roots are solidly grounded in the native soil.

Abani Sen is also famous for his studies and paintings of animals.

Abani Sen’s work can be found at the Museum of modern Art in New Delhi, and in many private collections, Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi collected his work, and so did Lord and Lady Mountbatten. Some of his drawings of animals were made into glass objects by Steuben Glass in the USA.

Text source – SaffronArt