J. K. Chillar

J.K. Chillar is a contemporary Indian sculptor pursuing his passion since the last 50 years. Wanting to develop his affinity towards stone carving, he went on to do his Masters in Fine Arts Sculpture from MS University Baroda in 1970. He got married in July 1971 with Prayag Jha, a graphic artist.

The core strength of Chillar lies in his strong foundation of drawing and terracotta. His drawings and terracotta exude the simplicity in the form he is expressing without any details and yet giving the viewer a holistic picture of form, dimension and movement being created. He is able to capture the simplified form of an object by removing details, which helps create a unique look and feel in his objects, human faces, animals, and human figures. Hence he expresses this essence, in various mediums such as clay, charcoal, drawing, marble sculptures and bronze sculptures.

Each of his drawings and terracotta are unique in the sense that they represent the two-dimensional plane, as precursors for his three dimensional sculptures. His work is set apart from other sculptors due to the fluidity in the flow of rhythmic lines and continuity of shapes.There are no breaks or variations in the body movement and flow.

Chillar has been the recipient of over 20 national and state level awards for sculpture from various organizations such as Maharashtra Gaurav Puraskaar, All India Exhibition of Art, National Award for art from Lalit Kala Akademi, Govt of Haryana award and numerous other awards over his 50 year career in sculpture. He has exhibited his work widely by hosting 22 solo shows nationally and internationally. His works are part of many prestigious collections such as the Lalit Kala Akademi, National Gallery of Modern Art, Government of Haryana, Govt of Gujarat State Lalit Kala Academy, Nehru Art Centre, Birla Academy of Arts amongst others.

He lives and works in Navi Mumbai.