| Medium | : | Mixed Media |
|---|---|---|
| Height | : | 14 inch / 35.6 cm |
| Width | : | 10 inch / 25.4 cm |
| Dimension | : | W: 25.4 cm × H: 35.6 cm |
“Untitled” by Bijan Choudhury — A powerful ink and watercolor composition of abstracted female forms, evoking themes of collective identity and emotional resilience with stark expressive lines and subdued hues.
Bijan Choudhury | Mixed Media on Paper | 14 x 10 inches | 1969
This painting is a striking work by Bijan Choudhury, a key figure of the Bengal contemporary art movement and a founding member of the Calcutta Painters Group. The composition features a cluster of distorted, nude female figures, set against a dark background. The figures are elongated and exaggerated, with expressive faces that carry a blend of stoicism and subtle distress.
Choudhury’s use of minimal colors—hints of pastel reds, greens, and blues—contrasts with the strong, defined black ink lines, giving the piece a raw, almost primal energy. His figures often reflect themes of social struggle, emotional burden, and collective identity, especially through depictions of women in unidealized forms.
The overlapping forms and unity of the group hint at a shared experience or collective voice, emphasizing community over individuality—a hallmark of his political and humanist perspective.
Artist Bijan Choudhury was born in Faridpur in 1931. He was one of the early practitioners of contemporary art in Bengal. Every serious workshop would find him involved in an exchange of thoughts and idioms of visual and literary expressions.Born to journalist Kunjabehari Chowdhury, Bijan Chowdhury was raised in an atmosphere steeped in music, painting and drama. Bijan Choudhury has worked on the imagery of Bengali poetry as it has evolved since its earliest days to the present, covering almost more than four centuries of poetical development.
His paintings have narrative elements but are in no way illustrative. He is here both as a composer and interpreter. His archetypal imagery and symbolism are not explicit as in the recent Indian variety of Surrealism and fantastic art. He has always avoided the sensational and the fearful aspects of art. He has searched for significant visual forms that have behind them the range and scope of Human Art since the earliest cave dwelling days.
Since his early days at Kolkata’s Govt College of Art and Craft he was deeply involved in Marxist politics. This led to his being expelled before completing his diploma but strengthened his bond with Dhaka as it prompted him to graduate from their Govt Institute of Arts. And till his last breath he considered Bangladesh to be his own.
Artist Bijan Chowdhury passed away in 2012.
Education
1945-49: GCAC, Kolkata; 1953: Grad., Govt. Institute of Arts, Dhaka.
Exhibitions
1959 Group show, Society of Contemporary Artists, Calcutta.
1960 Group show, Society of Contemporary Artists, Calcutta.
1960 Bangla Sanskriti Sammelan, Calcutta and Bombay.
1962 Solo show at Arts and Prints Gallery, Calcutta.
1963 Solo show at Arts and Prints Gallery, Calcutta.
1963 Solo Exhibition at Patna.
1964 Eight Painters from Calcutta, AIFACS Gallery, New Delhi.
1964 Calcutta Painters group show, Calcutta.
1965 Calcutta Painters group show, Calcutta.
1966 Show in honour of Giacometti, Industry House, Calcutta.
1968 Exhibition with Paritosh Sen, Pravas Sen, Sarbari Roy Chowdhury, Mahim Rudra, Calcutta.
1969 West Bengal Artists, sponsored by Srinantwu, Bombay.
1974 Exhibition at Birla Academy of Art & Culture, Calcutta.
1974 Calcutta Painters group show, Birla Academy of Art & Culture, Calcutta.
1975 Calcutta Painters group show, Sridharani Art Gallery, New Delhi.
1975 Participated in the Third Triennale, New Delhi.
1977 Retrospective, Allai
Awards
1963 Academy of Fine Arts Award, Calcutta.
1978 Rabindra Bharati Award, Calcutta.
1978 Documentary coloured film entitled `Bijan`, made by Film Australia, Film Division of Govt. of Australia.
1995 `Abanindra Puroshkar`, Govt. of West Bengal, Calcutta.
1996 : He also received William Carey Award.
2004: Doctor of Literature, RBU
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| Dimensions | 25.4 × 35.56 cm |
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