'Return Of The Hangul' by Suman Gupta

Born in1964 in Jammu, Suman Gupta graduated with a law degree from the University of Jammu in 1988. A self taught artist, his practice revolves around landscapes encompassing the natural beauty and simple but tough life of people he has grown up watching from his childhood.

He did his Bachelor of commerce with Economics, Accountancy and English, thus enjoying little background in art. But he imbibed the nuances of art based on his own instinct. His anthropological and meticulously detailed work is rooted in the culture of the region.

It stands out for his well composed narratives executed with finesse in a colorful palette. Working in tempera or watercolors on paper as well as oils and acrylic on canvas, the artist skillfully brings alive the region’s natural beauty with its flora fauna, mountains, landscapes and folklore. There are musicians as well as simple folks in his realistic and calm photo- feature like compositions that are multilayered and aim to high light local existential concerns.

In 2012 he was invited to showcase his work at the India Special Exhibition at 5th Beijing International Art Biennale, China. He was awarded ‘Lorenzo Il Magnifico’ for his work ‘In Trance’ at Florence Biennial 2011, and was invited to participate in the 8th edition of the Florence Biennale, Italy.

He was also nominated as one of the jury member for 52nd National Exhibition of Arts by Lalit Kala Akademi. In 2006 he won the National Academy Award for ‘Blue River and the God of Fish’ and also won an award of honor presented by Central Mahajan Sabha, Jammu apart from the J&K State Award for ‘Jay’s Remain’.

Suman's Gupta’s work has been exhibited in a number of solo and group shows within India. A few prestigious solo exhibitions have been at the UN headquarters in Switzerland; and a solo show in 2012 at Norway. The artist works out of his studio based in Jammu. 'Return Of The Hangul', a solo exhibition by the artist, takes place at Gallerie Nvya, Delhi.