CELEBRATE GOAN ART

LAXMAN PAI

 
 

21/01/1926

 

 

 

Artist Profile

BEGINNINGS

He was born in Margao, Goa. He was born in Brahmin Hindu family, strict followers of traditional values. 1946 Offered Satyagraha, Madgaon, toured in police custody. Participated in Goa Liberation Movement. After completing his academic studies in J.J. School of Art Laxman Pai left to continue work in Paris. In Europe he gained technical experience in printmaking and oil painting. 1951 Goes to Paris, where he stayed for ten years.

EDUCATION

Primary education in Madgaon, first in Marathi for four years from Damodar Vidyalaya, then two years in Portuguese and further in English from New Era High School, to complete Bombay University Matriculation. 1943-47 Educated at the J.J. School, Bombay.

EXHIBITIONS

  • 1949 Joint exhb. with S. Palsikar, Bombay Art Society, Bombay.
  • 1950 First solo exhb., opened by Mr. Karl J. Khandalwala, Bombay Art Society, Bombay.
  • 1951 Exhb., Salon d` Automne, Paris.
  • 1952 Exhb., Rue de Sein, Paris.
  • 1952 Exhb., Galerie Raymond Duncan, Paris.
  • 1952 Solo exhb., Galerie Beaux- Arts, London.
  • 1953 Exhb., Rue St. Placide, Paris.
  • 1953 Solo exhb., Galerie W. Gurlitt, Munich.
  • 1953 Solo exhb., AIFACS, New Delhi.
  • 1954 Exhb., Alliance Francaise, Bombay.
  • 1954 Solo exhb., Galerie R. Duncan, Paris.
  • 1955 Solo exhb., Galerie Marcel Bernheim, Paris.
  • 1955 Retrospective (1945-55), under the patronage of Congress for Cultural, paintings on `Geet Govinda`, Sanskrit poem of XII century, Paris.
  • 1956 `Images de Goa`, Galerie Prismes, Rue Monsieur Le Prince, Paris.
  • 1957 Exhb., Galerie Gurlitt, Munich.
  • 1957 Exhb., Palais Dauphine, Paris.
  • 1958 `Ramayana and Life of Mahatma Gandhi`, Galerie de l` Alliance, Bombay and New Delhi.

COLLECTION

Ben & Abbey Grey Foundation, USA. New York Public Library. Berlin Museum, Germany. Museum of Modern Art, Paris. Madras Museum. Nagpur Museum. New York Library. National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi. Punjab University Museum.

AWARDS

1947 Received Mayo Medal. 1961,63 National Award, Lalit Kala Akademi. 1972 National Award, Kangra Portraits Show, New Delhi. 1985 Awarded Padma Shri, Govt. of India. 1987 Honored by Govt. of Goa. 1995 Nehru Award, Goa.

STYLE

Laxman Pais style was directly influenced by designs he was commissioned to do for execution on porcelain. He has a strong bent toward the lyrical, with emphasis on a delicate and expressive line. He mixes the elements of nature as plant forms and the female form is sensual and graceful patterns, through lines. His experimentation with abstraction was occasioned by his love for the ragas performed on the sitar. He chose to give a visual interpretation, through colour and variety of lines, to the moods of the music as determined by the vibrations of the notes. Thus his works speak of a visual poetry with a happy blend of tradition and modernity, of reality, of technical perfection and exuberance. Bright colours and strong lines create an unsentimental lyricism in the works of Pai. He did not like to use the terms like symbol and fantasy to describe his works. In Paris, he was influenced by the artists like Paul Klee and Marc Chagall and worked with simplified angular forms and vibrating

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

1947-51 Taught at J.J. School of Art, Bombay. 1977-87 Principal, Goa College of Art, Goa.

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