Paritosh Sen

The success of a painting lies in the artist's willingness to approach each painting on its terms. Painter, illustrator, tutor, and writer, Paritosh Sen has been a part of the Indian art world for almost four decades. Some of his most recognizable works are his caricatures, which reflect strong underlying sociopolitical undertones, and his drawings of female nudes. His depiction style is influenced by his exposure to modern Western art and has traces of cubism. He uses two-dimensional structured shots but still creates an illusion of voluptuousness.

His drawings and paintings are characterized by their strong lines and bold, stylized strokes. Although color is an important aspect of his paintings, it is the human figure, which expresses an infinite number of emotions, that dominates his art. A recurring theme in Sens' works is his representation of scenes of everyday urban life. These activities are presented from a cynical and detached perspective, which is typically Sen's point of view.

Paritosh Sen has a diploma in Fine Arts from the Government College of Arts and Crafts, Chennai. In 1942 he moved to Calcutta, where he and a group of friends formed the Calcutta Group, an association of artists that sought to incorporate contemporary values into Indian art. In 1949 he left for Paris to continue his studies, attending, among other institutes, the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. He received a fellowship for 1970-71 from the John D. Rockefeller III Fund. A prolific writer, Sen has published many works in both Bengali and English, including a series of autobiographical vignettes titled Jindabahar Lane. His works have been exhibited in India and internationally, in Paris, London, Germany, Tokyo, and the United States.

Paritosh Sen passed away in October 2008.

BORN

October 18, 1918, Dhaka Bangladesh

DIED

October 22, 2008 Calcutta

EDUCATION QUALIFICATIONS

1949-54 He studied in Paris at the Andre Lhotes School, the Grand Chaumier Academy, the School of Fine Arts (Mural Painting), and the Louvre School (History of Painting), Paris.

1936-40 Government College of Arts and Crafts, Chennai

SELECTED POSTHUMOUS EXHIBITIONS

2012-13 Calcutta Chromosome, The Viewing Room, Mumbai

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 Goddess, lion, peasant, priest Modern and contemporary Indian art, from the collection of Shelley and Donald Rubin at the Oglethorpe University Museum of Art, Atlanta

2011 Manifestations V, Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi

2010 Akar Prakar, Kolkata

2010 Figure Landscape Part One, Aicon Gallery, New York

2010 Evolve 10th Anniversary Exhibition, Tao Art Gallery, Mumbai, Nehru Centre, Mumbai

Annual Exhibition 2010, Chawla Art Gallery, New Delhi

2010 Black is Beautiful, Indian Fine Arts, Mumbai

2010 Essential, eclectic, ephemeral, The Harrington Mansions, Kolkata

2009 Continuous Modern, Galerie 88, Calcutta

2009 Indian Art after Independence Selected works from the collections of Virginia and Ravi Akhoury and Shelley and Donald Rubin, Emile Lowe Gallery, Hempstead

2009 The Root of Everything, Mementos Gallery, Bangalore

SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2008 Paritosh at 88, Project 88, Mumbai

2007 Paritosh at 88, Galerie 88, Mumbai

2002 Retrospective, Artworld, Chennai

2002 Retrospective, Lalit Kala Academy, Chennai

2001 Retrospective Mini-Exhibition, Birla Academy of Art and Culture, Kolkata

1998 Works on paper, Lakereen Art Gallery, Mumbai

1992 Acrylics as watercolors, The Village Gallery, New Delhi

1991 Instant Images, The Village Gallery, New Delhi

1989 Self-portraits, The Village Gallery, New Delhi

1973 Sanskriti Gallery, New Delhi

1967 Academy of Fine Arts, Calcutta

1965 Chemould Gallery, Calcutta

1962 London

1950 Brussels

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2008 Moderns, Royal Cultural Centre, Amman, Jordan organized by Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi in collaboration with Embassy of India, Amman, Jordan

2008 Frame Figure Field 20th Century Modern and Contemporary Indian Art, Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi

2008 Freedom 2008 - Sixty years after India's independence, Center for International Modern Art (CIMA), Calcutta

2008 Stories, reflections and constructions, ITC Windsor, Bangalore

2007 Colors of Art, presented by Galerie Sara Arakkal and Gallery Art Resource Trust at Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai

2007 12 artists, presented by Akar Prakar at Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai

2006 Drawing Exhibition: An Act of Art II, Priyasri Art Gallery, Mumbai

1993 Wounds, Center for International Modern Art (CIMA), Calcutta

1992 Confluence 92, Calcutta

1984 Four Indian partners, Stockholm, Sweden

1972 Four Indian partners, Pittsburgh, USA.

1951 Calcutta Group Joint Exhibition of the Progressive Art Group (PAG), Calcutta

1944 First Calcutta Group Exhibition, Service Club, Calcutta

SELECTED JOINT EXHIBITIONS

2006 With Tyeb Mehta, Gallery One, London

PARTICIPATIONS

1986 2nd Havana Biennial, Cuba

1965 Sao Paulo Biennial, Brazil

1965 Commonwealth Arts Festival, London

HONORS AND AWARD

2004 Lalit Kala Ratna, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi

1999 Aban Gagan Puruskar, Viswabharti University, Santiniketan

1998 Hirachand Dugar Award, Calcutta

1998 Smt. Bijoya Chakraborty Smriti Puraskar, Kolkata

1998 Rabindra Bharti University, Kolkata

1997 English Speaking Union Outstanding Citizen Award

Kalidas Nag Award 1996

1995 West Bengal State Lalit Kala Award for Achievement in Art

1991 Conferred Honey. Ph.D. in Literature, Burdwan University, West Bengal

1986 Scholarship conferred, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi