Arup Das

Arup Das (1924-2004) was born in West Bengal. He graduated from the Government College of Arts and Crafts, Calcutta in the 1940s. From 1960 to 1968, he was a council member of the All India Fine Arts and Crafts Society, New Delhi. In 1972, Das went to study in the UK on a British Council fellowship, exposing him to Western art movements and European masters. 

Das was a figurative painter and an acclaimed muralist. His paintings often revolve around human figures, attempting to portray man as a social and historical being placed within the framework of his cultural and natural environment. His human figuration, expressively stylised, exudes monumentality despite their smaller formats. His canvases are a judicious blend of timeless ideas, told in a language that is pertinent to our own time. Another recurring theme in Das’s paintings is the arrival of the messiah, conveying eternal hope and ultimate salvation for mankind. 

He has exhibited in more than forty solo and group shows both in India and internationally. He won the National Award from the Lalit Kala Akademi and the President’s Silver Plaque, both in 1957. His works are in numerous collections, including the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi; the Sahitya Kala Parishad, New Delhi; and the All India Fine Arts and Crafts Society, New Delhi.