ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES
SANAT KAR
Born, 1935, West Bengal
Diploma in Painting, CGAC, (1950-55)
A majority of Sanat Kar's works are surrealistic. They have a curious dream-like appearance, which approaches nightmarish. His distorted figures are barely recognizable, leaving a rather uncomfortable residue. As a result, his oeuvre hover over the edge of reality and doesn't ever arrive. His work symbolizes the mysteries of life to which there are often no answers.
Kar maintains a low profile but paintings are an eloquent testimony to his talent. He uses tempera most often in his work Kar's palette – mauve, dark green, browns, magentas and greys – buttress the pervasive darkness. He cleverly uses chiaroscuro to achieve his gloomy atmospheres. A favorite motif is the sea: an angry grey green out of which arise men and women as if just born, still with the placental fluid obscuring their faces. A large number of the creatures are amphibious, showing the all-pervading influence of water on our lives and the fear that it can generate. But of course, along with the grotesque and macabre, birth and death, the beginning and the end of the cycle of life hold endless fascination for Kar.
The artist lives and works in Kolkata.
Select Solo Exhibitions
2006 The Lyrical Mudra, ArtsIndia, New York
2006 Akarprakar, Kolkata
2002-03 Retrospective – Bronzes and Prints, Birla Academy of Art and Culture, Kolkata and Mumbai
Select Group Exhibitions
2003 Manifestations, organized by Delhi Art Gallery, World Trade Centre, Mumbai and Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi
2000 Bengal Foundation, Dhaka.
1990 Helpage 1990, Mumbai
1988 Festival of India exhibitions, Takaoka Municipal Museum of Art & Meguro Museum of Art, Japan
1985 Indian Printmaking, JG, Bombay
1983 India in Print, Koninklijk Institute Vorde, Amsterdam
RANBIR KALEKA
Born 1953 Patiala, Punjab
Diploma in Painting, College of Art, Punjab University, Chandigarh (1976-77)
Taught at the Fine Arts Department, College for Women, Punjabi University, Patiala, India (1980-85)
Taught at the Delhi College of Art, New Delhi (1985-87)
M.A. Painting, Royal College of Art, London
The artist lives and works in New Delhi, India.
Select Solo Exhibitions
2008 Fables From The House Of Ibaan: Stage –I, Bose Pacia, New York
Revolutions – Forms That Turn, 16th Biennale of Sydney
Mechanisms of Motion, New Delhi
2007 Permanent Multi-media installation commissioned by Spertus Museum, Chicago, USA
Bose Pacia Gallery, New York
2005 Bose Pacia Gallery, New York
Select Group Exhibitions
2007 Multi-media installation, commissioned by Spertus Museum for permanent display in Chicago
HORN PLEASE; Narratives in Contemporary Indian Art, Museum of Fine Arts Berne, Switzerland
Hangar Bicocca, Spazio d'Arte Contemporanea, Milan, Italy
Public Places, Private Spaces, Newark Museum, New Jersey
New Narratives: Contemporary Art from India, Chicago Cultural Institute, Chicago
Hungry God - Indian Contemporary Art, Busan MOMA
2006 Art Video Lounge, curated by Michael Rush, Art Basel, Maimi Beach
Hungry God: Indian Contemporary Art, Busan Musuem of Modern Art, Korea
Hungry God: Indian Contemporary Art, Arario Beijing*
Edge of Desire: Recent Art in India, NGMA (National Museum of Modern Art), New Delhi
2005 iCon: India Contemporary, (collateral event), Venice Biennale
Edge of Desire: Recent Art in India, Asia Society Museum, New York; Tamayo Museum, Mexico
City, MARCO (Museum of Contemporary Art), Monterrey, Mexico; Asian Art Museum of San Francisco; Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto
Golden Jubilee, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi
Revisualising India, Osians, New Delhi
Herwitz 100, Aicon Gallery, New York
Honors & Awards
2004-05 Residency at Villa Montalvo, California
1999-00 Artistic consultant, Basic Needs Pavilion, Expo 2000, Hanover, Germany
1986 Sanskriti Award, New Delhi.
1979 National Award, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi
MANISHA PAREKH
Born 1961, Gujarat, India
Lives and works in New Delhi
1991-93 M.A. Painting - Royal College of Art, London
1988-90 M.A. Painting - M. S. University, Baroda, India
1983-88 B.A. Painting - M. S. University, Baroda, India
Select Solo Exhibitions
2009 Nature Morte, New Delhi
2008 Wonder Woods, Bodhi Art, New York
2006 Shadow Gardens, Berkeley Square Gallery, London
Memory Membrane, Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai
2004 Nature Morte, New Delhi
2002 Nature Morte, New Delhi
2000 Nature Morte, New Delhi
1999 Gallery Foundation for Indian Artists, Amsterdam
1996 Pundole Art Gallery, Mumbai
1995 Goethe-Institute, Bonn
IFA Gallery, Bonn
Select Group Exhibitions
2009 Bapu, Saffron Art, Mumbai
2008 Faultlines , Bodhi Art, Mumbai
2008 Fluid Structures, Vadehra Gallery, New Delhi
2007 Indian Color, Keumsan Gallery, Seoul
Core Rhythms, Kitab Mahal, Mumbai
Nature Morte, New Delhi
Its Here and Now: Young Voices from India, Grosvernor Vadehra, London
2006 Myrrh, Tao Art Gallery, Mumbai
Shadow Lines, Vadehra Art Gallery, New Delhi
2005 Span, Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai
Are We Like This Only, Vadehra Art Gallery,
Rabindra Bhavan, New Delhi
Endless Terrain, Rabindra Bhavan, New Delhi
Negotiating Matter/s", Anant Gallery, New Delhi
2004 Subtlely Minimally, Rabindra Bhavan, New Delhi
Anticipation, Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai
Bose Pacia Modern, New York
Nature Morte, New Delhi
2003 An Apparent Calm, Grant Pirrie Gallery, Sydney
Hightlight, Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai
20X20, Chemould Art Gallery, Mumbai
2002 New Paradigms, Visual Art Gallery, India Habitat Centre, New Delhi
Heat,India Habitat Centre, New Delhi
2001 Three Contempory Painters, Bose Pacia Modern, New York
2000 Havana Biennale, Havana
Global View", Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai
Embarkment, Millenium Show, Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai
Kala Ghoda Festival, Mumbai
Beyond the Surface, The Fine Art Company, Mumbai and Gallery Espace, New Delhi
1999 Istanbul Biennale, Istanbul
Studio Guenzani, Milan
Edge of the Century, British Council, New Delhi
1998 Multimedia, CIMA Gallery, Calcutta
Khoj International Artists Workshop Open-Day, Modinagar, India
Ada or Ador, Nature Morte, Habitat Centre, New Delhi
New Images, Perception, Creations, CIMA Gallery, New Delhi and Calcutta
1997 Khoj International Artists Workshop Open-Day, Modinagar & British Council, New Delhi
Wasanii International Artists Workshop Exhibition, Nairobi
Gift for India, Sahmat, New Delhi
Pacaembu Facade, Sao Paulo
Cross Current, Travel Exhibition, Norway
1996 Recipes, Eicher Gallery, New Delhi
1995 Fastenzeit, Gallery 68elf, Cologne
The Tent, Atelierhaus, Bonn
1994 Gallery 7, Hong Kong
Women Artists '94, SPA, Hyderabad
1993 Art Fair '93, Business Design Centre, London
Turning Point, Paton Gallery, London
1992 Kanoria Centre for Arts, Ahmedabad
XI-XI Exhibition, Royal College of Art, London
1988 National Exhibition, New Delhi
Contemporary Art Gallery, Ahmedabad
Honors & Awards
1993 Erasmus Award - Hochschule der Kunste, Berlin, Germany
1991 Lalit Kala Academi Award in Printmaking