Sunil Das

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Sunil Das
Born(1939-08-04)4 August 1939
Died10 August 2015(2015-08-10) (aged 76)
NationalityIndian
EducationGovernment College of Art & Craft, Kolkata
École des Beaux-Arts, Paris
Known forPainting, Drawing
MovementExpressionism
AwardsPadma Shri
National Award, 1978
Websitewww.sunildas.net

Sunil Das (4 August 1939 – 10 August 2015) was an Indian expressionist painter.[1][2] He is known for the paintings in his Bull Series and his piece "Woman".[3]

He was the founder member of Society of Contemporary Artists.[4]

Early life and background

Sunil Das was born in Calcutta, Kolkata, India.[5]

He joined the Government College of Art & Craft, Kolkata in 1955, then won a French Government Scholarship to study at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris.

Das is the only Indian to receive the prestigious Shiromani Kala Puraskar for his artistic excellence while studying his undergraduate degree at the Government College of Art and Craft, Kolkatta.[6]

He died in 2015.[7]

Career

Das joined Government of India's Handloom division, Ministry of Textiles.[8]

Sunil Das was one of India's most important post-modernist painters. He went through different styles of painting throughout his career. Das said,"To prevent myself from producing the same kind of work, I keep altering my vision. From the day people begun to see me as a painter, a huge responsibility fell upon me, particularly to respond to the feelings of the people at the grassroots level who are also my viewer, as also to delve deep into realities of life around me." At 60 years of age, he could look back at his nine to ten phases of paintings, all of them marked by supreme skill and a sense of integrity. An indefatigable painter, Das jumped from one style to another easily.[9] He was inspired by the force and the strength of the moving horse and went on to create a work made out of charcoal titled- Horses in Motion. His works revolved around Man-Woman relationships, Woman in her sexual empowerment and In her loneliness.[10] He had around 88 solo exhibitions across the world including having his work included in the Paris Biennale.[11]

  • Bull series
  • A woman in her failings (oil on canvas)
  • Horse series (charcoal) [12]

Exhibitions

Solo exhibitions

  • 2008 ‘Endless Night’, Ganges Art, Kolkata
  • 2005-06 ‘Art Moves – Works by Sunil Das’, organized by Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi at Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai, Park Hotel, Kolkata and Rabindra Bhavan, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi
  • 2005 ‘Horses…and Bulls – Paintings on Canvas and Paper by Sunil Das’, Jamaat, Mumbai
  • 2003 ‘Sunil Das in Retrospect 1957-2003’,. ITC Sonar Bangla Art Gallery, Kolkata
  • 2001 ‘Drawings – Bulls and Horses’, Dhoomimal Art Centre, New Delhi
  • 2000 Art Heritage, New Delhi

Participations

  • 1999 Annual Exhibition, 32nd Anniversary of Birla Academy of Art and Culture, Kolkata
  • 1989 20th International Biennale, Sao Paulo, Brazil
  • 1989 International Biennale, Havana, Cuba
  • 1989 Festival of Japan, Tokyo
  • 1989 International Triennale, New Delhi

Awards

Death

In 2015, Sunil died due to a massive cardiac arrest, aged 76.[15]

References

  1. ^ "Indian Expressionist Painter Sunil Das Dies at 76". 21 August 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
  2. ^ "A Collectors Item: The Art of Empathy". www.screenindia.com. Archived from the original on 2 February 2013. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  3. ^ "Female vision". Indian Express. 6 March 2000. Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  4. ^ "Postmodern artist Sunil Das passes away at 76". India Today.
  5. ^ "Drawn to Perfection". The Indian Express. 11 August 2015.
  6. ^ "Postmodern artist Sunil Das passes away at 76". India Today.
  7. ^ "Postmodern artist Sunil Das passes away at 76 : FYI, News - India Today". indiatoday.intoday.in. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
  8. ^ "Mumbai: 'Tantra - On The Edge'... An exhibition of Indian tantra artists curated by Madhu Khanna". Free Press Journal.
  9. ^ saffronart.com/artists/sunil-das
  10. ^ "Sunil Das: Contemporary Indian Artist". Artofbengal.com. Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  11. ^ "Postmodern artist Sunil Das passes away at 76". India Today.
  12. ^ "Personality : Of horses, bulls and life itself". The Hindu. 14 January 2006. Archived from the original on 7 August 2007. Retrieved 7 February 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  13. ^ "Padma Awards Announced". Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Home Affairs. 25 January 2014. Retrieved 26 January 2014.
  14. ^ "Artforconcern : Your Destination for Modern & Contemporary Indian Art". artforconcern.org.
  15. ^ "Artist Sunil Das, one of the greats, dies". The Times of India. 11 August 2015.


External links

Profile on Delhi Art Gallery