Manishi Dey

Manishi Dey
Born Manishi Dey
22 September 1909
Dhaka, Bangladesh
Died 31 January 1966
Kolkata, India
Nationality Indian

Manishi Dey (1909–1966) was an Indian painter of the Bengal school of art. He was born in Dhaka on 22. September 1909 and died on 31. January 1966 in Kolkata. He was the younger brother of Mukul Dey, a pioneering Indian teacher and engraver.[1]

Bengal Women, painted around 1950 by Manishi Dey

Manishi Dey was one of the most versatile students of Abanindranath Tagore’s Bengal school of art, whose close students also included Nandalal Bose, Asit Kumar Haldar, Sarada Ukil, Mukul Dey, K. Venkatappa and Jamini Roy. He travelled tirelessly throughout the Indian subcontinent in search of varied and newer visual idioms.

Dey was a member of the Bombay Progressive Artists' Group, which was most influential on modern Indian painting. He was a finished artist in 'Indian Painting' and water colour 'Wash' technique, and later in his career embraced cubist art and a variety of media.[2] He interacted closely with artists like M. F. Husain, Sailoz Mookherjea and Shantanu Ukil in New Delhi during the late-1940s and early-1950s. Dey was one of the major contributors and transformers of Modern Indian Art.[3]

His first solo show in Calcutta was held in 1928, and his works were exhibited in many cities during his time.[4] In 1946, his works were exhibited by the All India Fine Arts & Crafts Society in New Delhi, jointly with other leading Indian artists such as Amrita Sher-Gil and Sailoz Mookherjea.[5] His works received a renewed interest since the end of the 20th Century and were exhibited in London and New York.[6]

The works of Manishi Dey are exhibited in the National Gallery of Modern Art NGMA in Mumbai, the State Lalit Kala Akademie in Luknow, Uttar Pradesh, the Delhi Art Gallery, the Allahabad Museum, the Salarjung Museum, Hyderabad and Kala Bhavan in Santiniketan.

References

  1. Mukul Dey Archives
  2. Baschet, Roger. "La peinture asiatique - Son histoire et ses merveilles". Paris, Editions S.N.E.P. (1954)
  3. Cotter, Holland. "Art Review: Indian Modernism via an Eclectic and Elusive Artist". New York Times (August 19, 2008)
  4. Satyasri Ukil. "Manishi Dey: The Elusive Bohemian", art etc. news & views (February 2012)
  5. International Contemporary Art Exhibition. The Council Of The All India Fine Arts & Crafts Society, New Delhi (1946)
  6. The Early Masters Rare Paintings of the Bengal Renaissance. Jaya Appasamy, Dr. Marcella Sirhandi & Andrew Robinson. Bose Pacia Modern, New York (1999)

External links