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Mohan Samant
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Born to a landowning family in Mumbai, Samant graduated from Sir J.J. School of Arts in 1952, winning India's two most prestigious art honors, the gold medal of the Academy of Fine Arts of Calcutta and that of the Bombay Art Society. He worked in Italy for two years (1957-58) on an Italian government scholarship. He studied Basholi miniature painting under M. Palsikar. In January 1959, he came to New York on a Rockefeller grant....
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Born to a landowning family in Mumbai, Samant graduated from Sir J.J. School of Arts in 1952, winning India's two most prestigious art honors, the gold medal of the Academy of Fine Arts of Calcutta and that of the Bombay Art Society. He worked in Italy for two years (1957-58) on an Italian government scholarship. He studied Basholi miniature painting under M. Palsikar. In January 1959, he came to New York on a Rockefeller grant.
Renowned art historian and critic John Richardson named the artist among the world’s 100 best artists in the year 1963. Hillary Clinton later honored Samant during her senatorial campaign as the best artist living in Manhattan. Influenced by such painters as Paul Klee and Picasso, Samant appreciates inventing one's own form and style and yet having a personality that is completely apart from style. 'You can evolve in what you are persistent in creating,' said Samant. 'There are 25 different ways of painting, and confronting a canvas evolves into a form in 15 different ways. You don't repeat yourself.'
In the early 50s, Samant joined the Progressive Artists' Group. While his fellow PAGs took their inspiration predominately from Paris, Samant explored the imagery o f Egyptian funerary wall drawings, Ajanta murals and Rajput miniatures, establishing a range of primeval images in his work.
Since 1968, Samant has been living in New York. In an interview, he describes spending hours at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where he continues to find powerful symbols in the assembly of cultural relics from around the world. He describes his art almost like installation art; only difference being that my installation is within my frame." He does a large number of wire drawings and proceeds to fit them like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle on to the canvas. He never knows what it's going to look like until he is 70 per cent of the way through.
Explaining the creative processes, he once noted: 'I do not practice sarangi. I play it every day as if I am in a concert, sometimes very well, sometimes very badly. Similarly, I don't practice painting with drawing and sketching. I just paint and if I don't like it I over paint the same canvas twice, thrice, many times. I do not use drawings and sketches in preparation for the paintings, they are separate works altogether.'
Though his paintings are invariably mixed media, the heterogeneous elements are deftly blended to create pieces that are surprisingly simple in appearance. His paintings are primarily abstract, but retain figurative aspects that often-limning mythic narratives. One of the most intriguing aspects of Samant's paintings is his use of texture: manipulation of paint materials with sand and glue in the early 1960's, paper cutouts attached to the canvas in the 1970's and the application of wire drawings in the 1980's.
A sarangi exponent, Samant's music occupies a large part of his heart. In the artist's Manhattan studio on May 18, 2003, an afternoon of music and art was arranged when he played Indian classical ragas on the sarangi surrounded by his paintings.
Among his prominent solo shows are Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai (2000), Birla Academy of Art, Kolkata (1998), Birla Academy of Art & Culture, Mumbai (1997), Gallery B.A.I., New York (1995, 94), Birthday Book, New York (1975, 73), Selected Artists Gallery, New York (1972), Pundole Gallery, Mumbai (1967), Gallery Chemould, Mumbai and Delhi (1966), Taj Art Gallery, Mumbai (1966), Taj Art Gallery, Mumbai (1965), World House Galleries, New York (1961-65) and Rome Institute of Oriental Studies, Italy (1958)
His work features in several prestigious collections including Asia Society, New York, Birla Art Academy, Kolkata, Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh, Colgate University, New York, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C., The Museum of Modern Art, New York, The National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi and Lalit Kala Akademi, Delhi
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Born
1926
Mumbai
Died
2004
Education
1952 Sir J.J. School of Arts, Mumbai
Studied Bashouli miniature painting under M. Palsikar, traditional Indian painter
Exhibitions
Selected Posthumous Exhibitions
2015 'Abby Grey and Indian...
Selected Posthumous Exhibitions
2015 'Abby Grey and Indian Modernism: Selections from the NYU Art Collection', Grey Art Gallery, New York University, New York
2014 'Mohan Samant: Paintings (1924-2004) Music and Dance Series, l'Association France-Ameriques, Paris
2010 'Manifestations IV', Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi
2006 The Museum Gallery, Mumbai
Selected Solo Exhibitions
2000 Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai
1998 Birla Academy of Art, Calcutta
1997 Birla Academy of Art & Culture, Mumbai
1995 Gallery B.A.I., New York
1994 Gallery B.A.I., New York
1975 BirthdayBook, New York
1973 BirthdayBook, New York
1972 Selected Artists Gallery, New York
1967 Pundol Gallery, Bombay
1966 Gallery Chemould, Bombay and Delhi
1966 Taj Art Gallery, Bombay
1965 Taj Art Gallery, Bombay
1961-65 World House Galleries, New York (4 shows)
1958 Rome Institute of Oriental Studies, Italy
1952-54 Bombay, Calcutta and New Delhi
Selected Group Exhibitions
1999 A Tribute the Beginning, Crimson-The Art Resource, Mumbai
1997 To Celebrate India's 50 years of Independence, Permanent Mission of India Building, NY
1995 India: Reflections of a Country, Krasdale Gallery, New York
1995 A Group of 8 , Contemporary Arts of India, New York
1994 Permanent Mission of India, New York
1993 Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, New York
1992 Jacob Javits Convention Center, New York
1989 Exhibition of Art, Culture and History, First Global Convention of People of Indian Origin, Sheraton Center, New York
1983 The National Arts Club, New York
1982 Modern Indian Paintings. From the Collection of the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi
1982 Hirshhorn Museum, Washington D.C
1978 Contemporary Artists of India, New India House, New York
1978 Contemporary Artists of India, Alternative Center for International Arts, New York
1977 Keen Gallery, New York
1977 Couturier Galerie, Stamford, Connecticut
1977 ASIFS Gallery, New York
1973 Renwick Gallery, Smithsonian Institute, Washington D.C.
1970 Art of Modern World, Gallery of International Modern Art, Birla Academy of Art & Culture, Kolkata
1969 Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas
1969 The University of South Florida
1966 India Group Show, Philharmonic Hall, Lincoln Center
1965 Gallery Chemould, Kolkata
1966 Gallery Chemould, Mumbai, New Delhi
1966 Taj Art Gallery, Mumbai
1963 National Gallery, Washington, D.C.
1962-64 Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut (one exhibition per year)
1962 Mary Washington College
1959 Contemporary Indian Art, Kumar Gallery, New Delhi and various museums in Germany
1959 The Graham Gallery, New York
1958 Gallery One, London
1956 New Delhi
1953 Gallery Palette, Zurich, Switzerland
Participations
1997 50 years of Art in Mumbai, National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA), Mumbai
1982 India: Myth and Reality; Aspects of Modern Indian Art, Museum of Modern Art, Oxford, England
1977-78 Pictorial Space: A Point of View on Contemporary Indian Art, Lalit Kala Akademi, Rabindra Bhavan Galleries, New Delhi
1968-69 Commonwealth Exhibition, Montreal
1968 Triennial, New Delhi
1963-64 Paintings from the Museum of Modern Art, New York, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
1963 Commonwealth Exhibition, London
1963 Dunn International (102 Best Painters of the World), Beaverbrook Art Gallery, Fredericton, N.B. and Tate Gallery, London
1962 Carnegie International, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
1960 Sao Paulo Biennial
1957/59 Tokyo Biennial
1956/58 Venice Biennial
Honours and Awards
2000 Asian American Heritage Award
1958 Cultural Exchange Scholarship of Asia Society, New York
1957 Cultural Exchange Scholarship of Italian Government
1956-7 Gold Medal of Bombay Art Society
1956 Lalit Kala Academy Award (All Indian Art Award)
1954 Governor's Prize, Maharashtra
1952 Calcutta Art Society
2000 Asian American Heritage Award
1958 Cultural Exchange Scholarship of Asia Society, New York
1957 Cultural Exchange Scholarship of Italian Government
1956-7 Gold Medal of Bombay Art Society
1956 Lalit Kala Academy Award (All Indian Art Award)
1954 Governor's Prize, Maharashtra
1952 Calcutta Art Society
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PAST AUCTIONS
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Lot 49
Details
Spring Art Auction
28-29 March 2012
The Agony of the ...
Mixed media on canvas pasted on board
35.5 x 35.5 in
Winning bid
$9,156
Rs 4,48,644
(Inclusive of buyer's premium)
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