Like several other of his contemporaries, he desisted Western Modernism as a sole privileged yardstick. He instead turned to indigenous folk and tribal culture of India. As a result international modernism and Indigenous folk references are intertwined in his paintings. Renowned artist Nilima Sheikh has mentioned of his oeuvre: “His contact with surface, whether it is brush, tool or hand, is always light. His eye receives signals quickly - it follows that laying out of surface and contour is rapid; no time spent obscuring the process.”
A multi-faceted artist, he is a printmaker, muralist, art scholar, writer, philosopher, designer and a teacher, all rolled in one. His style inspired by rich folk art traditions also refers the Western Modernism’s cubistic styles. Exploration of art as language of expression – the personal and social – is the binding thread of his art practice in diverse media, styles and techniques that have subtly blended traditional elements and modernist sensibility.
Throwing light on his art practice, renowned critic Ranjit Hoskote has noted: “The basic tension in his art is that between vulnerability and inviolability, secrecy and exposure: he mediates this through the constant opposition, in his tableaux, between dress and undress, face and mask.”
In an interview with Subhalakshmi Shukla courtesy the Seagull Foundation for the Arts in Kolkata, the celebrated artist has stated: “I don’t have a one-point agenda. I find what I see around exciting, but at various levels. I do not swear by a method nor stick to a process. I don’t want to lose this mobility, and with that my desire and power, to discover the world afresh. I look at it from various viewpoints, and represent it through various media, each and all of which have the ability to unlock new perceptions. I want it to flourish (so-to-say) in a cloud of unknowing...”
The eminent painter has received the Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian award.
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