K.G. Subramanyan was one of the most exciting, versatile and polymathic artists of India. He was, among other things, a seminal thinker and intellectual, a prolific writer on art and his art encompassed an ecclectic and diverse range of media.
K.G. Subramanyan was one of the most exciting, versatile and polymathic artists of India. He was, among other things, a seminal thinker and intellectual, a prolific writer on art and his art encompassed an ecclectic and diverse range of media.
K.G. Subramanyan was one of the most exciting, versatile and polymathic artists of India. He was, among other things, a seminal thinker and intellectual, a prolific writer on art and his art encompassed an ecclectic and diverse range of media.
Introduction
Date of Birth
15 Feb 1924
Zodiac sign
Aquarius
Date of Death
29 Jun 2016
Age
92
Place of Birth
Kuthuparambu, Kerala, India
Place of Death
Vadodara, Gujarat, India
State Country of Birth
Kerala, India
State Country of Death
Gujarat, India
1943
Presidency College Madras
1948
Kala Bhavan Visva-Bharati University Shantiniketan
1956
British Council Research Scholarship to Slade School of Art London
1945
Helped Organise the first Delhi Exhibition Featuring Benode Behari Mukherjee and Ramkinkar Baij, New Delhi, India
1947
Mural for Hindi Bhavan with Benode Behari, Santiniketan, India
1955
Mural, Jyoti Industry Ltd., Vadodara, India
1955
Mural, Faculty of Fine Arts, M.S. University, Vadodara, India
1959
Lecturer in Painting, Faculty of Fine Arts, MS University, Vadodara, India
1961
Deputy Director, Design, All India Handloom Board, Mumbai, India
1963
Mural, King of the Dark Chamber, Rabindralaya, Lucknow, India
1965
Reader, Painting Department, Faculty of Fine Arts, Maharaja Sayajirao University, Vadodara, India
1965
Member, Gujarat Lalit Kala Akademi
1965
Mural, India Pavilion, New York World Fair, New York, USA
1966
Design Consultant, All India Handloom Board, Mumbai, India
1967
Member, All India Board of Technical Studies in Applied Art
1967
JDR IIIrd Fund Fellowship, New York, USA
1969
Mural, India of My Dreams Pavilion, Gandhi Darshan, New Delhi, India
1972
Published The Butterfly and the Cricket, A Summer Story and Robby
1974
Member, Gujarat Lalit Kala Akademi, India
1974
Dean, Faculty of Fine Arts, MS University, Vadodara, India
1974
Published Our Friends the Ogres and The King and the Little Man
1975
Member of Direction, World Crafts Council
1975
Delegate, Asian Assembly, World Crafts Council, Sydney, Australia
1976
President, Crafts Council of India
1976
Member Delegate, General Assembly, World Crafts Council, Oaxtepec, Mexico, USA
1976
Visiting Lecturer, Canadian Universities in Ottawa and Hamilton, Canada
1976
Mural, R&D Building, Jyoti Pvt. Ltd., Vadodara, India
1977
Member, All India Handicrafts Board
1978
Member, Governing Council, National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, India
1978
Visiting Fellow, Kala Bhavan, Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan, India
1978
Published, Moving Focus: Essays on Indian Art, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi, India
1979
Member, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi, India
1979
Published, 'How Poppy Grew Happy, Cat's Night and Day and Frog Life is Fun Life'
1980
Professor, Painting Department, Faculty of Fine Arts, MS University, Vadodara, India
1982
Invited for seminar on Traditional Arts at Barbican Centre, London, UK
1984
Member, Siksha-samiti and Karmasamiti, Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan, India
1984
Member, All India Handloom and Handicrafts Board
1985
Guest, Chinese Artists' Association, China
1985
Fellow, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi, India
1985
Published, 'Of Ogres, Beasts and Men'
1987
Published, 'The Living Tradition', Seagull Books, Kolkata, India
1988
Christensen Fellow, St. Catherine's College, Oxford, UK
1988
Mural, Sand-cast Cement, Kala Bhavan, Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan, India
1989
Professor, Painting Department, Kala Bhavan, Visva Bharati Univeresity, Santiniketan, India
1989
Mural, Reverse painting on Glass (with school children), Santiniketan, India
1989
Professor Emeritus, Kala Bhavan, Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan, India
1990
Mural, Black and White, Kala Bhavan, Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan, India (First phase)
1991
Fellow, Kerala Lalit Kala Akademi
1992
Published, The Creative Circuit, Seagull Books, Kolkata, India
1993
Mural, Black and White, Kala Bhavan, Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan, India (Second phase)
1995
Published, 'How Hanu Became Hanuman, Death in Eden and In the Zoo'
1998
Published, 'The Tale ofthe Talking Face'
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Date of Birth
15 Feb 1924
Zodiac sign
Aquarius
Date of Death
29 Jun 2016
Age
92
Place of Birth
Kuthuparambu, Kerala, India
Place of Death
Vadodara, Gujarat, India
State Country of Birth
Kerala, India
State Country of Death
Gujarat, India
1943
Presidency College Madras
1948
Kala Bhavan Visva-Bharati University Shantiniketan
1956
British Council Research Scholarship to Slade School of Art London
1945
Helped Organise the first Delhi Exhibition Featuring Benode Behari Mukherjee and Ramkinkar Baij, New Delhi, India
1947
Mural for Hindi Bhavan with Benode Behari, Santiniketan, India
1955
Mural, Jyoti Industry Ltd., Vadodara, India
1955
Mural, Faculty of Fine Arts, M.S. University, Vadodara, India
1959
Lecturer in Painting, Faculty of Fine Arts, MS University, Vadodara, India
1961
Deputy Director, Design, All India Handloom Board, Mumbai, India
1963
Mural, King of the Dark Chamber, Rabindralaya, Lucknow, India
1965
Reader, Painting Department, Faculty of Fine Arts, Maharaja Sayajirao University, Vadodara, India
1965
Member, Gujarat Lalit Kala Akademi
1965
Mural, India Pavilion, New York World Fair, New York, USA
1966
Design Consultant, All India Handloom Board, Mumbai, India
1967
Member, All India Board of Technical Studies in Applied Art
1967
JDR IIIrd Fund Fellowship, New York, USA
1969
Mural, India of My Dreams Pavilion, Gandhi Darshan, New Delhi, India
1972
Published The Butterfly and the Cricket, A Summer Story and Robby
1974
Member, Gujarat Lalit Kala Akademi, India
1974
Dean, Faculty of Fine Arts, MS University, Vadodara, India
1974
Published Our Friends the Ogres and The King and the Little Man
1975
Member of Direction, World Crafts Council
1975
Delegate, Asian Assembly, World Crafts Council, Sydney, Australia
1976
President, Crafts Council of India
1976
Member Delegate, General Assembly, World Crafts Council, Oaxtepec, Mexico, USA
1976
Visiting Lecturer, Canadian Universities in Ottawa and Hamilton, Canada
1976
Mural, R&D Building, Jyoti Pvt. Ltd., Vadodara, India
1977
Member, All India Handicrafts Board
1978
Member, Governing Council, National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, India
1978
Visiting Fellow, Kala Bhavan, Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan, India
1978
Published, Moving Focus: Essays on Indian Art, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi, India
1979
Member, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi, India
1979
Published, 'How Poppy Grew Happy, Cat's Night and Day and Frog Life is Fun Life'
1980
Professor, Painting Department, Faculty of Fine Arts, MS University, Vadodara, India
1982
Invited for seminar on Traditional Arts at Barbican Centre, London, UK
1984
Member, Siksha-samiti and Karmasamiti, Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan, India
1984
Member, All India Handloom and Handicrafts Board
1985
Guest, Chinese Artists' Association, China
1985
Fellow, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi, India
1985
Published, 'Of Ogres, Beasts and Men'
1987
Published, 'The Living Tradition', Seagull Books, Kolkata, India
1988
Christensen Fellow, St. Catherine's College, Oxford, UK
1988
Mural, Sand-cast Cement, Kala Bhavan, Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan, India
1989
Professor, Painting Department, Kala Bhavan, Visva Bharati Univeresity, Santiniketan, India
1989
Mural, Reverse painting on Glass (with school children), Santiniketan, India
1989
Professor Emeritus, Kala Bhavan, Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan, India
1990
Mural, Black and White, Kala Bhavan, Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan, India (First phase)
1991
Fellow, Kerala Lalit Kala Akademi
1992
Published, The Creative Circuit, Seagull Books, Kolkata, India
1993
Mural, Black and White, Kala Bhavan, Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan, India (Second phase)
1995
Published, 'How Hanu Became Hanuman, Death in Eden and In the Zoo'
Delhi Shilpi Chakra, Freemason's Hall, New Delhi, India
1956
Three Young Artists from Abroad - Hitchin, UK
1956
Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai, India
1958
Delhi Shilpi Chakra, New Delhi, India
1959
Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai, India
1961
Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai, India
1961
Sao Paolo Biennale, Brazil
1962
Kunika-Chemould Art Centre, New Delhi, India
24 December 1962 to 3 January 1963
1964
Tokyo Biennale, Japan
1964
Ten Indian Artists, USA
1965
Exhibition of Textile Paintings, Mural, Woven Hangings, New York World Trade Fair, New York, USA
1965
Commonwealth Arts Festival, Commonwealth Gallery, London, UK
1965
Ten Indian Artists, South East Asia
1965
Art now in India, Lanig Art Gallery, Newcastle, UK
1966
Indian Art Exhibition, Ghent, Belgium
1966
Gallery Chemould, Mumbai, India
1967
Gallery Navina, New York, USA
1967
Gallery Chemould, Mumbai, India
1968
1st Triennale India, Lalit Kala Akademi, Rabindra Bhavan, New Delhi, India
1955
Delhi Shilpi Chakra, Freemason's Hall, New Delhi, India
1956
Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai, India
1958
Delhi Shilpi Chakra, New Delhi, India
1959
Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai, India
1961
Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai, India
1962
Kunika-Chemould Art Centre, New Delhi, India
24 December 1962 to 3 January 1963
1966
Gallery Chemould, Mumbai, India
1967
Gallery Navina, New York, USA
1967
Gallery Chemould, Mumbai, India
1969
Kunika-Chemould Art Centre, New Delhi, India
1969
Gallery Chemould, Mumbai, India
1971
Exhibition of Polytichs, Kunika-Chemould Art Centre, New Delhi, India
1972
Exhibition of Terracotta Reliefs, Kunika-Chemould Art Centre, New Delhi, India
1978
Exhibition of Terracotta Reliefs, Art Heritage, Triveni Kala Sangam, New Delhi, India
1978
Exhibition of Terracotta Reliefs and Paintings, Nandan Gallery, Santiniketan, India
1979
Exhibition of Prints, Art Heritage, Triveni Kala Sangam, New Delhi, India
1980
Art Heritage, Triveni Kala Sangam, New Delhi, India
1981
Retrospective Exhibition, Bharat Bhavan, Vadodara, India
1982
Exhibition of Glass and Acrylic Sheet Paintings, Nandan Gallery, Santiniketan, India
1982
Exhibition of Glass and Acrylic Sheet Paintings, Art Heritage, Triveni Kala Sangam, New Delhi, India
1953
Indian Art Exhibition, USA
1956
Three Young Artists from Abroad - Hitchin, UK
1961
Sao Paolo Biennale, Brazil
1964
Tokyo Biennale, Japan
1964
Ten Indian Artists, USA
1965
Exhibition of Textile Paintings, Mural, Woven Hangings, New York World Trade Fair, New York, USA
1965
Commonwealth Arts Festival, Commonwealth Gallery, London, UK
1965
Ten Indian Artists, South East Asia
1965
Art now in India, Lanig Art Gallery, Newcastle, UK
1966
Indian Art Exhibition, Ghent, Belgium
1968
1st Triennale India, Lalit Kala Akademi, Rabindra Bhavan, New Delhi, India
1971
Indian Art Exhibition, Tehran, Iran
1975
3rd Triennale India, Lalit Kala Akademi, Rabindra Bhavan, New Delhi, India
1976
Menton Biennale, Menton, France
1979
Asian Artist Exhibition, Part - 1, Japan
1979
Sao Paolo Biennale, Brazil
1980
Indian Art Exhibition, Tokyo, Japan
1980
Indian Art Exhibition, Washington DC, USA
1980
Asian Artist Exhibition, Part - II, Japan
1982
Contemporary Indian Art, Royal Academy of Arts, London, UK
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Chronological Highlights
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1924
K.G. Subramanyan was born in 1924 in Kuthuparambu, Kerala, India.
Subramanyan, K.G. (Artist). Windows IIIc. Oil on ply-board, 1968 | Painting | FineArts | 0022617
1968
Literary Reference
The window /grid functioned as a geometrical counterpoint to the organic/ gestural and heightened its dramatic verve. As a see-through barrier it also served to make the viewers aware of their voyeuristic role. In the three polyptichs he followed up with, incidentally also named Windows I, II & III during 1968- 9, these possibilities were given full play. Composed of nine small panels, each eighteen inches square, they turned the picture into a kaleidoscope peep show. By showing the figures and their backdrops in fragmentary closeups and rendering them in bright and flattened colours, he made the images strikingly animate, yet tantalizingly unrevealing. Thus, though repeated and serialized so as to suggest a ‘cartoon strip narration’ the final work is pure visuality dressed up as a mock narrative.
Subramanyan, K.G. (Artist). Terrace I. Oil on canvas, 1973 | Painting | 00881116
1973
Public Auction High
In 2006, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Terrace I (1973), offered in the Forty Masterpieces Museum Quality Series VII by Osian's, which concluded on 09 September 2006 at Mumbai, achieving a sale price of ₹1,20,00,000 ($259,347). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.
K.G. Subramanyan’s ability to use the human form, especially the female face, as a means of creating images which fuse the playful and the harsh, the erotic and detached, so evolving an iconicity through the mood of an iconoclast, is unique. The pictorial techniques and modes of traditional Indian glass painting, the Kalighat pats, the Japanese Ukiyo-e woodcut prints and the art of Matisse, are all fused within his original artistic mind and hand, so revealing a style and idiom, totally his own
Subramanyan, K.G. (Artist). K. G. Subramanyan - Retrospective Exhibition. Calcutta: Birla Academy of Art and Culture, 1983 | Solo Exhibition Catalogue | 00882801
1983
Retrospective Exhibition
In 1983, K. G. Subramanyan Retrospective Exhibition marked a major milestone in the exhibition history of K.G. Subramanyan, offering a retrospective survey of the artist's artistic production
Christie's (Auction House). Contemporary Indian Art (Charity Auction). 20 December 1987, Bombay | Auction Catalogue | EconomicsArt | 00861836
1987
First Auction Appearance | BOOK.AUC
On 20 December 1987, K.G. Subramanyan made their debut in the Indian public auction market when Faces was presented as Lot 32 in Contemporary Indian Art (Charity Auction), conducted by Christie's in Mumbai, India. This auction marked the artist's first recorded appearance in the public auction market, establishing the earliest chapter of their auction history.
Subramanyan, K.G. (Artist). Rain On High Street. Gouache and oil on perspex, 1987 | Painting | 00879884
1987
Public Auction High
In 2006, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Rain On High Street (1987), offered in the Masterpieces & Museum Quality Series VI: With Rare Drawings and Books on Indian Contemporary Art by Osian's, which concluded on 01 March 2006 at New Delhi, achieving a sale price of ₹27,60,000 ($62,232). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.
Subramanyan, K.G. (Artist). Training For Circus. Reverse painting in gouache and oil on acrylic sheet, 1989 | Painting | 00879886
1989
Public Auction High
In 2006, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Training For Circus (1989), offered in the Masterpieces & Museum Quality Series VI: With Rare Drawings and Books on Indian Contemporary Art by Osian's, which concluded on 01 March 2006 at New Delhi, achieving a sale price of ₹32,20,000 ($72,604). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.
Subramanyan, K.G. (Artist). Symbols Of Liberty. Reverse painting in gouache and oil on acrylic sheet, 1989 | Painting | 00879885
1989
Public Auction High
In 2006, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Symbols Of Liberty (1989), offered in the Masterpieces & Museum Quality Series VI: With Rare Drawings and Books on Indian Contemporary Art by Osian's, which concluded on 01 March 2006 at New Delhi, achieving a sale price of ₹34,50,000 ($77,790). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.
In 2005, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Untitled (1990), offered in the Modern and Contemporary Paintings by Nine Masters: Spring Online Auction by Saffronart, which concluded on 02 March 2005 at Online, achieving a sale price of ₹9,61,400 ($22,000). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.
In 2005, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Odd Encounters (1994), offered in the Modern and Contemporary Paintings by Nine Masters: Spring Online Auction by Saffronart, which concluded on 02 March 2005 at Online, achieving a sale price of ₹19,25,597 ($44,064). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.
Subramanyan, K.G. (Artist). Two Women. Acrylic on silk, 1999 | Painting | 00880933
1999
Public Auction High
In 2006, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Two Women (1999), offered in the The Bengal Art Auction: Early and Current Art of the Region by Apparao Art, which concluded on 03 September 2006 at Online, achieving a sale price of ₹70,85,000 ($152,562). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.
Subramanyan, K.G. (Artist). Buss Cola And The Beauty Queens. Oil on canvas, 2000 | Painting | FineArts | 00372668
2000
Public Auction High
In 2001, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Buss Cola And The Beauty Queens (2000), offered in the Indian Contemporary Fine Art by Saffronart, which concluded on 21 September 2001 at Los Angeles, achieving a sale price of ₹3,84,080 ($8,000). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.
In 2002, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Mask, Icon, Mount, Mascot (2000), offered in the Modern Indian Paintings by Saffronart, which concluded on 16 May 2002 at Online, achieving a sale price of ₹3,98,400 ($8,121). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.
Subramanyan, K.G. (Artist) and R. Siva Kumar (Curator). K.G. Subramanyan - A Retrospective. New Delhi: National Gallery of Modern Art, 2003 | Solo Exhibition Catalogue | 00882988
2003
Retrospective Exhibition
In 2003, K.G. Subramanyan A Retrospective marked a major milestone in the exhibition history of K.G. Subramanyan, offering a retrospective survey of the artist's artistic production
Subramanyan, K.G. (Artist). Black Grey White. Acrylic and oil on canvas, 2014 | Painting | FineArts | 00641739
2014
Public Auction High
In 2016, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Black Grey White (2014), offered in the Modern Indian Art by Asta Guru, which concluded on 22 March 2016 at Online, achieving a sale price of ₹1,33,58,400 ($200,754). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.
In 2022, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Pastoral (2014), offered in the Historic Masterpieces by Asta Guru, which concluded on 28 December 2022 at Online, achieving a sale price of ₹2,25,02,850 ($271,385.81). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.
In 2018, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Janmashtami (2015), offered in the Evening Sale by Saffronart, which concluded on 13 March 2018 at Mumbai, achieving a sale price of ₹1,74,00,000 ($271,875). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.
Asta Guru (Auction House). Modern Indian Art. 14 May 2019, Mumbai | Auction Catalogue | EconomicsArt | 00862313
2019
Featured on Auction Catalogue Cover | AG.Mum/14.05.19
In 2019, an artwork by K.G. Subramanyan was featured on the cover of Asta Guru: Modern Indian Art (May 2019, Mumbai), marking a documented highlight in the artist's public and auction market visibility.
Saffronart (Auction House). Creative Circuit - The Art of K G Subramanyan. 20 January 2021, Online | Auction Catalogue | EconomicsArt | 00862372
2021
Featured on Auction Catalogue Cover | Sa.Onl/20.01.21
In 2021, an artwork by K.G. Subramanyan was featured on the cover of Saffronart: Creative Circuit (January 2021, Mumbai), marking a documented highlight in the artist's public and auction market visibility.
Asta Guru (Auction House). Modern Indian Art - Collectors Choice. 03 May 2022, Online | Auction Catalogue | EconomicsArt | 00862425
2022
Featured on Auction Catalogue Cover | AG.Onl/03.05.22
In 2022, an artwork by K.G. Subramanyan was featured on the cover of Asta Guru: Modern Indian Art (May 2022, Mumbai), marking a documented highlight in the artist's public and auction market visibility.