Teach and tell: The gurus of art

Some of India’s greatest artists have also been teachers, but have they merely handed over a tradition or inspired fresh thinking?

Sep 10, 2016, 06:04 IST10 min
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Abanindranath Tagore(1871-1951)Taught at: Government School of Art, Calcutta, as vice-principal Abanindranath Tagore’s influence as a teacher can hardly be restricted to his alma mater wher...
Image by Courtesy: DAG Modern Archives
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‘Vinayak Masoji’ (1938), pastel and charcoal on cardboard[Abanindranath Tagore]
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KG Subramanyan(1924-2016)Taught at: Faculty of Fine Arts, MS University, Baroda, and Kala Bhavana, Visva-Bharati University, SantiniketanManida—as this Keralite, who adopted Santiniketan as...
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‘Still Life with Mangoes’ (1961), oil, sticks and stones on canvas pasted on plyboard[KG Subramanyan]
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KCS Paniker(1911-77)Taught at: Government College of Fine Arts, Chennai, of which he was principal Referred to as a child prodigy for his early start as an artist, Paniker went on to form t...
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‘Picture in Yellow and Blue’ (1964), oil on canvas[KCS Paniker]
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Nandalal Bose(1882-1966)Taught at: Kala Bhavana at Visva-Bharati University, Santiniketan, on Rabindranath Tagore’s persuasion Abanindranath Tagore’s student, who went on to outshine his te...
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‘Flute player’ (1937), tempera on paper[Nandalal Bose]
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Sankho Chaudhuri(1916-2006)Taught at: Faculty of Fine Arts, MS University, Baroda, and visiting fellow at Kala Bhavana, Visva-Bharati University, Santiniketan, and Banaras Hindu University,...
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‘Tribute to Bhabeshda’ (1992), bronze[Sankho Chaudhuri]
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NS Bendre(1910-92)Taught at: Faculty of Fine Arts, MS University, Baroda Along with Gulam Sheikh, NS Bendre was the kind of teacher who encouraged students from different backgrounds to joi...
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Untitled (‘A Village Fair, Rajgir-Bihar’), water colour on paper[NS Bendre]
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Rameshwar Broota(b. 1941)Taught at: College of Art, Delhi he serves as Head of Department at Triveni Kala Sangam, New Delhi Many artists have passed through Rameshwar Broota’s mentorship, p...
Image by Courtesy MAP / Tasveer
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Untitled (1974), oil on canvas [Rameshwar Broota]
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MV Dhurandhar(1867-1944)Taught at: Sir JJ School of Art, Bombay (now Mumbai), of which he became both headmaster and vice-principal Trained by the British artist John Griffiths, Dhurandhar ...
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‘Portrait of the Artist’s Wife’, oil on canvas[MV Dhurandhar]
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[Untitled by Ramkinkar Baij]There have been numerous teacher-artists whose works have survived time, or whose teaching skills have proved to be legendary. One of the most interesting of the...
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[Untitled by BC Sanyal]BC Sanyal (1901-2003) established the Lahore School of Art, which became an important centre of education and practice, and went on to teach art at Modern School, New...
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[Untitled by Jeram Patel]At the Faculty of Fine Arts, Baroda, two artists who influenced numerous students were Nasreen Mohamedi (1937-90) and Jeram Patel (1930-2016). Patel, known for maki...
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[Untitled by Nasreen Mohamedi]Nasreen Mohamedi was no different, and it is only with her recent showing in New York that she has begun to get due credit. ...
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[Untitled (‘Market’) by Sailoz Mukherjea]In New Delhi, Sailoz Mukherjea (1906-60) taught landscape art at the Delhi Polytechnic (later College of Art, Delhi), and among his star pupils was ...
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[Untitled (‘Cycle of Life’) by Sarada Ukil]Bengal style artist Sarada Ukil (1888-1940) taught at Modern School and with his brothers Ranada and Barada went on to teach artists in the capita...
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