Style : The city of Kolkata has always figured prominently in his work. His themes come from his personal interactions with its urban milieu – its sickness and sordidness, its violence and vulnerability and all that compounds its existential agony. Shuvaprasanna has depicted varying moods of the city and its people, its places, and all its facets that make the city distinctive.
He doesn’t merely portray reality as ‘matter of fact’ and his presentation of reality often has dream-like elements in it. In terms of technique, Shuvaprasanna boasts a precise, finely executed style that yields an unmistakable visual intensity. He works comfortably in an assortment of media, including oil on canvas, charcoal, and mixed media.
Shuvaprasanna’s series of paintings, Icons and Illusions, marked a creative breakthrough for the artist in a number of ways. Whereas he had been known in the past as an urban artist with subject matter that reflected the byways, alleyways, birds, and people of his native Kolkata, in Icons and Illusions, he relished more in divinities and flowers. The iconic figures of Krishna, Radha, and Ganesha that found lyrical expression in the Icons series are modern representations and sophisticated idealizations of the same images in the popular media.
About the Artist & his work :
Born : In Calcutta, 1947.
Education :
Graduated from Indian College of Art (R.B. University, Calcutta) in 1969.
Exhibitions :
Shuvaprasanna has had several gallery and museum exhibitions, including at the Tao Art Gallery and at the Chawla Art Gallery, Square One Mall. Several works by the artist have been sold at auction, including ‘ABODE’ sold at Waddington’s ‘Fine Prints & Photography Auction’ in 2014. There have been many articles about Shuvaprasanna, including ‘An exclusive edifice’ written by Kunal Ray for The Hindu in 2014.
Selected Solo Exhibitions
2011 – Shuvaprasanna: Recent Works, CIMA, Centre of International Modern Art, India, Kolkata
2010 – Summer Show 2010, CIMA, Centre of International Modern Art, India, Kolkata
2007 – ‘Madhura: The Golden Flute’, organized by Indian Contemporary at Visual Arts Centre, Hong Kong
2006 – ‘The Divine Flute’, Aicon Gallery, USA
2002 – ‘Icons and Illusions’, Gallery ArtsIndia, New York
1998 – ‘An Appreciation of Ted Hughes’, Exhibition of Crow Paintings, British Council, Kolkata
1975 – Gallery Atlantis, Aix-En-Provence, France
1974 – Gallery “Les Hirondelles” Geneva, Switzerland
Selected Group Exhibitions
2016 – Gallery Collection January 2016, Tao Art Gallery, India, Mumbai
2015 – The Ecstasy of Art – 1, Tao Art Gallery, India, Mumbai Vibgyor: Canvases and Sculptures, Chawla Art Gallery, Square One Mall, India, New Delhi
2014 – Infinite: Tao’s 14th Anniversary Show, Tao Art Gallery, India, Mumbai
2012 – 1/25, Bengal Gallery of Fine Arts, Bangladesh, Dhaka
Joint Exhibitions :
1997 – With Shipra Bhattacharya, Art Today, New Delhi
Honours and Awards :
- 1979 Awarded by All India Fine Arts and Crafts Society (AIFACS), New Delhi
- 1978 Awarded by State Lalit Kala Academy, West Bengal
- 1977 Awarded by Birla Academy of Art and Culture, Kolkata.
