Shades of an other time

Ramkinkar Baij, one of the pioneers of modern Indian sculpture, remains an unsung hero. While the common man may not have heard much about him, his works speak volumes and they have left an indelible mark on the minds of many young artists. One of them is Anindya Kanti Biswas. Since 1995, he has been celebrating Baij’s birth anniversaries in whatever capacity he can. So, this year to commemorate the 111th birth centenary, he asked two of his friends — Rajarshi Chakrabarti and Rituparno Maity — to join him and exhibit their paintings as a tribute to the master. This exhibition by the three 40-something artists attempts to show how Baij was not just a great sculptor but also equally dexterous in landscape paintings.    

Biswas has been researching on Baij for 23 years now. His PhD on Baij’s landscape paintings took him nine long years to complete, he has written a book on him and also attempted to make a film, which he couldn’t complete due to lack of funds. “I’ve not tried to consciously emulate his works because it’s not possible. However, because I’ve studied him so much without ever having met him, you might just find some similarity,” he says and adds, “Baij, a student of Rabindranath Tagore and teacher of Indira Gandhi, never went to receive any awards. They were all handed over to him at Santiniketan.”

About 30 landscape paintings have been exhibited at the art show, made of different mediums like water colours, oil on canvas and pastel colours.

Another participating artist Chakrabarti, who is an associate professor of College of Art, adds, “Baij was a revolutionary and a rebel. He was a source of inspiration to artists in his era and he remains one till date. If an artist is ever disillusioned about why he should be painting, he should study Baij’s works. Baij had nothing in terms of luxuries but that never deterred him from continuing with his art. For me, Baij and Vincent van Gogh are on an equal pedestal.”  

Senior artist Amitava Bhowmick, who came to see the art works, says about the initiative of the trio, “Baij was an asset that Tagore had left in Santiniketan and the respect these young guns have for Baij is overwhelming. Their initiative of reminding us all of Baij’s greatness must be appreciated.”   

The exhibition is on till May 31 at Lokayata Art Gallery