Shuvaprasanna
Encyclopedia
Shuvaprasanna is an India
n artist
, born in Kolkata
in 1947. He graduated from the Indian College of Arts (Rabindra Bharati University
, Kolkata) in 1969. He was an active member of the 'Calcutta Painters' group. He married to artist Shipra Bhattacharya.
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. In the 1960s and 1970s his work was influenced by the turbulence and political violence of Kolkata.
Shuvaprasanna has depicted varying moods of the city and its people, its places, and all its facets that make the city distinctive. As he states, "There isn’t another city like Kolkata anywhere in the world. In the heart of it, I find innumerable themes, subjects." He does not 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.
Explaining his thought-process and philosophy as a painter, he notes: "What every creator wishes to achieve is a universal appeal. There should be no language problem while judging the merits of a painting. One should go beyond themes, beyond words. There can be no clear cut definition for feelings, nor should you wish to seek any logical explanation."
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 this series 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.
His work has been exhibited extensively in India and internationally in the United States
, Bangladesh
, Singapore
, France
, Switzerland
, and Germany
. He has won a number of awards.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
, born in Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
in 1947. He graduated from the Indian College of Arts (Rabindra Bharati University
Rabindra Bharati University
Rabindra Bharati University is a university in Kolkata, India. It was founded on May 8, 1962, under the Rabindra Bharati Act of the Government of West Bengal in 1961, to mark the birth centenary of the poet Rabindranath Tagore...
, Kolkata) in 1969. He was an active member of the 'Calcutta Painters' group. He married to artist Shipra Bhattacharya.
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
Existentialism
Existentialism is a term applied to a school of 19th- and 20th-century philosophers who, despite profound doctrinal differences, shared the belief that philosophical thinking begins with the human subject—not merely the thinking subject, but the acting, feeling, living human individual...
agony. In the 1960s and 1970s his work was influenced by the turbulence and political violence of Kolkata.
Shuvaprasanna has depicted varying moods of the city and its people, its places, and all its facets that make the city distinctive. As he states, "There isn’t another city like Kolkata anywhere in the world. In the heart of it, I find innumerable themes, subjects." He does not 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.
Explaining his thought-process and philosophy as a painter, he notes: "What every creator wishes to achieve is a universal appeal. There should be no language problem while judging the merits of a painting. One should go beyond themes, beyond words. There can be no clear cut definition for feelings, nor should you wish to seek any logical explanation."
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 this series he relished more in divinities and flowers. The iconic figures of Krishna
Krishna
Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
, Radha
Radha
Radha , also called Radhika, Radharani and Radhikarani, is the childhood friend and lover of Krishna in the Bhagavata Purana, and the Gita Govinda of the Vaisnava traditions of Hinduism...
, and Ganesha
Ganesha
Ganesha , also spelled Ganesa or Ganesh, also known as Ganapati , Vinayaka , and Pillaiyar , is one of the deities best-known and most widely worshipped in the Hindu pantheon. His image is found throughout India and Nepal. Hindu sects worship him regardless of affiliations...
that found lyrical expression in the Icons series are modern representations and sophisticated idealizations of the same images in the popular media.
His work has been exhibited extensively in India and internationally in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. He has won a number of awards.
Political career
Since 2007, after his painting career was down, Shuvaprasanna is more involved in politics of West Bengal state than painting and has been closely associated with Trinamul Congress leader Mamata Banerjee and he campaign for parivartan. As a recognition to his support, then Railway minister Mamata Banerjee created a new department in the railway ministry and made him chairperson of that department. He was given a salary of Rs, 50000 cash with lot of other perks and benefits. According to the railway officials, more than 3 crores per annum were being spent on perks and benefits of such people. Later, he was found to misuse his position, never seen doing any duty of the department for which he drew such a huge salary. He has been termed as 'key advisor' to Ms Banerjee by media. Of late he has been trying to launch a channel of his own to promote his ideas and politics. However this has run into bad weather as he has been caught using the name of Ms Banerjee and raising funds in the name of her. Mamata trying to protect her name has started distancing herself from this bearded painter.External links
- More recent paintings at the ArtAlive Gallery in New Delhi
- Earlier works on Saffronart
- Paintings 1970-2000 and Bio
- Picture of togetherness, The Telegraph, July 09, 2005
- Artist caught misusing Railway Minister's name
- Painter hopeful of launching TV channel soon
- New television channel draws Trinamool ire