Ramkinkar Baij
BORN DIED EDUCATION QUALIFICATIONS SELECTED POSTHUMOUS EXHIBITIONS SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS SELECTED JOINT EXHIBITIONS HONORS AND AWARD ABOUT THE ARTIST Ramkinkar Baij was the first Indian artist to experiment with abstract sculptural forms. His oil paintings on canvas have a unique experimental quality that goes beyond his time, without dogmas and with a single commitment: to be tirelessly creative. Born in Bankura, West Bengal, in 1906, Ramkinkar Baij studied at Kala Bhavan, Vishwa Bharati University, Santiniketan in 1925. Trained by two European sculptors, one of whom was a disciple of Bourdelle, who was visiting Santiniketan by invitation. for Tagore, his style remained exclusively his. Prepared by his mentors, Nandalal Bose and Tagore, the clay modeler turned artist. Working at a time when traditional art was transitioning into modern art, Baij's work proved crucial to the history of Indian art. Baij's nature and folklore background proved to be crucial influences in the formation of his style. Later, he headed the Sculpture Department of the Kala Bhavan. He believed that only momentum creates tension in a work of art. His work is characterized by tremendous energy, his art is joyful, vital, and tends towards light. It is earthy and dynamic while showing increasing movement or growth. His innovative work in sculpture has been recognized and respected, first in Santiniketan, then throughout the country, and also internationally. His sand and pebble sculptures are characterized by a typical, lyrical, and metrical sensuality, which has a surprising unity with nature. Indian sculpture, until then limited to academic naturalism, was transformed by this artist. He integrated elements of Santhal art and tribal life into his work and enhanced them with an understanding of Western Expressionism drawn from the books in the Kala Bhavan library. Although known primarily for his expressionist sculpture, he was a talented painter. This sense of rhythm that characterizes his sculpture is brilliantly manifested in his watercolors. The fluidity of this medium lent itself to his style. His works from the Kalighat tradition were interconnected with Cubism to achieve a peculiarly personal language. Both his sculptures and his paintings are spontaneous and bold. In 1990 a retrospective of his works was held at the National Gallery of Art in New Delhi. His works are in the permanent collection of the National Gallery of Modern Art in New Delhi and various public and private collections. Baij died on August 2, 1980, in Calcutta. Notification - We do not usually display Ramkinkar Baij's work, only send it to private art collectors and interested art buyers.
May 25, 1906 Jugipara, Bankura, West Bengal
August 2, 1980, SSKM Hospital, Calcutta
1925-29 Diploma in Fine Arts, Kala Bhavan, Visva-Bharati University, Santiniketan
1934 Joined as faculty, Kala Bhavan, Visva-Bharati University, Santiniketan.
2013 The Nude and the Nude The Body in Modern Indian Art, Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi
Gallery Collection 2012, Vadehra Art Gallery, New Delhi
2012 Ramkinkar Baij A Retrospective, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi
2011 Ethos V Indian Art through the Lens of History (1900 to 1980), Indigo Blue Art, Singapore
2011 Manifestations VI, Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi
2011 Manifestations V, Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi
2011 Time Unfolded, Kiran Nadar Museum of Art (KNMA), New Delhi
2010 Manifestations IV, Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi
2008 Moderns, Royal Cultural Centre, Amman, Jordan organized by Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi in collaboration with Embassy of India, Amman, Jordan
2008 Positions of the Santhal family around an Indian sculpture, in association with Bodhi Art and with the support of the British Council, Kunststiftung NRW, and Antwerp Provence at the Museum of Contemporary Art Antwerp (MuKHA), Belgium
2005 Manifestations III, Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi
2004 Manifestations II, Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi
2003 protests, Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi
1997 Santiniketan The Creation of a Contextual Modernism, National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA), New Delhi
1995 Reflections on Man and Nature on Six Artists, organized by the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) and the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA), New Delhi.
1990 Retrospective, National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA), New Delhi.
1972 Birla Academy of Art and Culture, Calcutta
1960-61.78 Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan
1960 Paintings, sketches and sculptures, Calcutta Arts Council, Calcutta
1942-47 New Delhi
1951 Calcutta Group Exhibition, Calcutta
1950, 51 Salon de Realities Nouvelle, Paris
1944 With Binod Behari Mukherjee at Massey Hall, New Delhi
1979 Doctor of Letters Award from Visva-Bharati University, Santiniketan
1977 Deshi Uttam Award from Viswa Bharti, Santiniketan
1970 Padma Bhushan, Government of India
1955 The Government of India invited him to make Yaksha and Yakshi sculptures for the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), New Delhi.
1945 The government of Nepal invited him to make Buddhist sculptures.
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