HAREN THAKUR

My sincere pursuit is to fathom the infinite in finite, ephemeral surroundings which is either based on my imagination or got a conduit when the unalloyed purity unfolded before my eyes in its pristine glory. Our past history or the primitive civilisation is a treasure trove. The primitive period is not entirely barbaric. We need to gather the remnants of brilliance from the past. I profoundly believe the present aestheticism emanates from the primitive past. The representations of ghastly unnatural structures have overshadowed the primitive life force. The tree is a great communicator, shows love, empathy, bonhomie and camaraderie. I give more importance to spontaneity, rhythm and flow rather than the outer sheen, sophistication and façade. This is just a small step to showcase my journey as an artist, being invoked by the internal yarning to quench my thirst for manifestation, to dabble with - canvas, art and splash of colour. We the artists have nothing new to deliver since the great Creator had already showered us with His bounties – the nature. My pursuit is to delve in the past to grope for the hidden wealth and splash on the canvas. Mere tenets or theory / doctrine cannot interpret the creation rather the creation should expound the theory. My voyage as an artist started when I joined Shantiniketan as a student, being blessed and honoured to have received the tutelage, guidance from the legendary, iconic sculptor Shri Ramkinkar and great stalwarts like S/Shri Somnath Hore, Sarbari Roychowdhury, Binod Bihari Mukherjee. The idyllic, sylvan surroundings of Shantiniketan coupled with the impact of the simplicity laced with the beauty of the Santhalis had have greatly influenced me, likewise the images were conjured. Shantiniketan taught me to comprehend the varied emotions of a tree – love, zeal, passion, restlessness, subtleties which was furthered and enhanced over the years during my stay in Jharkhand (Ranchi). As an artist my objective is to access the nature and the sapiens vis-à-vis their relations and the undercurrent of rhythm, coherence and the driving life-force that work eternally. “How one form merges into the other with his robust stroke and becomes effervescent like the fizz popping out from a champagne bottle!!” - once a critic remarked on my exhibits.

Education : Diploma in Fine Art, Kalabhavan, Shantiniketan Visvabharati University - 1975

Solo show : Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata - 1974 Birla Academy of Art and Culture - 1975-96 L T G Art Gallery, New Delhi - 1995 Chemold Art Gallery, Kolkata Emami Art Gallery, Kolkata India Habitat Centre, New Delhi Bajaj Art Gallery, Mumbai India Art Gallery, Pune Jehagir Art Gallery, Mumbai - 2016 NGMA, Bangalore Retrospective Show- 2019

Group show : Tao Art Gallery, Mumbai

Awards : Visva Bharati Merit Scholarship - 1974-75 Kolkata Information Cenre - 1987-88 Shilpi Samman, Ranchi - 1992-98 Academy of Fine Art Award - 1997 Sukumar Das Award - 1997-98 Recognition of State Personality in Pratiyogita Darpan - 1999 AIFCS Award - 2004 Sanskar Bharati Samman - 2004 Camlin Art Foundation Award - 2005 Jharkhand Ratna Award - 2006 Chintamoni Kar Award, Bangiya Sangit Parishad Angar award by Coal India Limited Recognition and award by Doordarshan, Ranchi Prabhat Khabar Gaurab Samman. Jharkhand kala sanskriti sanman. Dainik Bhaskar Samman