Confrontation : Sunil Dass

About Sunil Das

Sunil Das, a significant post-modernist painter from India, became well-known for his depictions of horses. “I must have done 7000 horses between 1950 to 60,” he says. “In 1962, I went to Spain, where I was fascinated by the bull fights.”

At the age of about 60, he may reflect on his nine to ten painting stages, each of which was characterised by exceptional technique and a strong sense of integrity. Sunil Das, a tireless painter, transitioned between styles with ease.

Talking about his art style, he says, “To express my authentic feelings about reality, I have to interpret it, I have conceptualize it. The previous reality gets transformed in the laboratory of minds. Then, I bring it out on the canvas.”

Sunil Das was raised in a middle-class household, and his father was only a little businessperson. He enrolled at a nearby art school after deciding to pursue painting after finishing his education. “I am a good sports man,” he says. “I like things which have a lot of rhythm and energy.”

He never makes his paintings from photos or models. “I do a sketch before I start painting. I always struggle with colours and shapes, until they fall to desired pattern. Like a music conductor, I summon all my music instruments to play and orchestrate an aesthetic unit out of various experiences.” He frequently paints with the palms of his hands or fingers instead of a brush or a pen while he is creating art.

He travelled to Europe thanks to a scholarship from the Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux-Arts in France. He happened to spend a few months in Spain throughout his travels, which is where he discovered his love of horses and bulls. In addition, Sunil Das' studies of graphic art in Paris and sculpture at Santiniketan in Kolkata have had an impact on his works. His works are structured and rigorous in a way that is more commonly associated with sculpture and graphic art etchings.

The associative qualities of Sunil Das's subjects are also conveyed in his paintings in addition to their physical characteristics.He occasionally paints people, but his interpretation of the human form is so distorted that it almost veers into ghastly surrealism. For instance, his oil on canvas series of ladies with enigmatic, seductive eyes conveys the constraints that women face in a variety of ways, including the erotic.

Sunil Das rarely utilises vibrant or warm colours in his paintings; instead, he favours muted shades of brown, mauve, and white to highlight the drama of daily life. He combines talent and effort. He uses minimalism and suggestion in his work. His paintings are morbidly interesting and somewhat bizarre in form. “I delve a lot on man’s inhumanity to man,” he says.

Sunil Das holds the distinction of being the only artist in India to have received a National Award while still a student at the Government College of Art and Craft in Kolkata (the Shiromani Kala Puraskar). His works have appeared in several exhibitions and are included in the collections of notable museums such the Ludwig Museum in Germany, the Glenbarra Art Museum in Japan, and the National Gallery of Modern Art in New Delhi, India.

Education

• 1961-3 L ‘Ecole Nationale Superior des Beaux Arts, Paris (On a French Government Scholarship)
• 1961-3 Research in Fresco and Mosaic under Monsieur Shapple Midie and Monsieur J. Aujame, Paris
• 1961-3 Studied Graphic Art under William Hayter and Krishna Reddy
• 1961-3 Research in Painting, Atelier Julian and Atelier 17, Paris
• 1954-59 Diploma in Painting, Government College of Arts and Crafts, Kolkata

Exhibitions

Solo Exhibitions

• 2008 ‘Endless Night’, Ganges Art, Kolkata
• 2005-06 ‘Art Moves – Works by Sunil Das’, organized by Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi at Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai, Park Hotel, Kolkata and Rabindra Bhavan, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi
• 2005 ‘Horses…and Bulls – Paintings on Canvas and Paper by Sunil Das’, Jamaat, Mumbai
• 2003 ‘Sunil Das in Retrospect 1957-2003’,. ITC Sonar Bangla Art Gallery, Kolkata
• 2001 ‘Drawings – Bulls and Horses’, Dhoomimal Art Centre, New Delhi
• 2000 Art Heritage, New Delhi

Participations

• 1999 Annual Exhibition, 32nd Anniversary of Birla Academy of Art and Culture, Kolkata
• 1989 20th International Biennale, Sao Paulo, Brazil
• 1989 International Biennale, Havana, Cuba
• 1989 Festival of Japan, Tokyo
• 1989 International Triennale, New Delhi

Honours and Awards

• 2008 Taj Ratna Award
• 1991 Shrimoni Award, Kolkata
• 1989 Commissioner Sao Paulo, Biennale, Brazil.
• 1983 Commissioner Triennale, India.
• 1982 Jury of National Exhibition of Art, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi
• 1978 National Award.