Bimal Dasgupta

Bimal Dasgupta (1917-1995) was born in Bengal. He was raised by his uncle who was a government employee. Although his uncle’s family did not support his ambition of becoming an artist, Dasgupta sought help from his father and joined Government College of Arts and Crafts, Calcutta in 1937. 

However, the war interrupted his studies and he went to work as a clerk in a war office where he was assistant art director for a magazine. Postwar, Dasgupta worked at Dhoomimal Art Gallery in New Delhi, as well as several advertising agencies. He then went on to teach at the College of Art, New Delhi for fourteen years. A six month scholarship to Europe introduced him to mediums like gouache and oils.

Dasgupta painted landscapes that gave full rein to his penchant for nature and its fanciful shapes and colours, with the ocean being an endless source of fascination. The theme of nature was consistent in his works throughout his career.  After an early reputation as a landscape painter, he briefly experimented with cubism and later dabbled in neo-tantrism, marking his abstract phase. He eventually turned to pure non-representational works using watercolour and acrylics. Dasgupta used textural changes and sharp-defined colour schemes, making his landscapes come alive with shifting shapes and barely visible forms.

As well as having exhibited widely nationally and internationally, Dasgupta was made a fellow of the Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi in 1989. He was also awarded the Sahitya Kala Parishad, New Delhi in 1972. He passed away in 1995.