In memory of a mentor: the return of K.S Kulkarni’s works

Shobha Bhatia still remembers her art classes in the 1960s, being taught by the Indian painter K.S Kulkarni. “He believed in the non-interventionist approach,” she says of her mentor. “If any of us asked him to show us strokes on our canvas, he would refuse, saying, ‘I will not do that because then you will all become Kulkarni’.”

K.S Kulkarni wanted his students to discover their own individual styles. “He always insisted that we keep painting, and told us not to throw away our early works. ‘Compare them later, and you’ll see the improvement,’ he’d say,” she adds.

Bhatia is the curator of the exhibition, ‘Esoteric Expressions: Convergence of the classical and the contemporary’, displaying Kulkarni’s works from the 1980s to the mid-1990s. The exhibition was put up at Triveni Kala Sangam (till August 31), one of the capital’s most important art complexes which was co-founded by Kulkarni. The exhibition moves to Gallerie Ganesha from September 5 to October 7.

Modernism with a folk touch

The exhibition has been divided into several categories–abstract, landscapes, still life, and figurative works, comprising both black-and-white drawings and coloured pieces. With modernist techniques and traditional motifs, his work recalls European mosaics and Cubism.

The artist’s compositions were also influenced by tribal and folk traditions. “Though he was inspired by adivasi and folk art, yet he made it look very contemporary. Even today, when you see his works, they look modern and relevant,” the gallerist says.

One of the paintings, titled ‘Flute Player’, shows a flutist dressed in soft-toned orange and yellow. The figure has been outlined using feathery, black strokes. The blue background, speckled with white dots, provides prominence to the subject.

Another painting, ‘Mother and Child’, depicts a mother holding her baby. The mother has a round face, and wide, calm eyes. She is wrapped in a bright red drape, while the child, with similar eyes lies across her arms, looking upward.

In most of his artworks, Kulkarni uses thick outlines, and slightly textured backgrounds. Subtle, bright, and dark tones, all find a place on his canvas.

The making of a maestro

Krishna Shamrao Kulkarni, was born in Belgaum (now Belagavi) district of Karnataka in 1916. His teenage years led him to Pune in Maharashtra, in search of employment and education. For a while, he designed billboards. After receiving initial training in Pune, he joined Sir JJ School of Arts in Mumbai. Between 1935 and 1942, he completed his diploma and postgraduate studies in fine arts.

When he moved to Delhi in 1943, the painter took up the job of a textile designer. It was only then that he came across artists like B.C. Sanyal, Kanwal Krishna, and Dhanraj Bhagat, many of whom were displaced from Lahore after Partition.

In 1949, they founded the Delhi Shilpi Chakra , a movement parallel to the Bombay Progressives.

Kulkarni taught for nearly two decades at Triveni Kala Sangam, and later at Banaras Hindu University. Kulkarni became a visiting professor at Skidmore College in New York.

Alongside teaching, he remained an active painter, exhibiting internationally in Tokyo, Paris, New York, Venice, Sao Paulo, and London. His 200-foot mural for an exhibition in Moscow, commissioned by the Indian government, remains one of his notable achievements. Kulkarni passed away on October 7, 1994; the exhibition concludes on that very day.

A tribute long due

When Bhatia opened Gallerie Ganesha in 1989, she invited Kulkarni to inaugurate the place with a solo show. Now, 36 years later, she pays homage to the maestro by bringing his work back to Triveni on the occasion of its 75th anniversary this year.

The curator recalls how unafraid her mentor was to experiment with colours. “He used unusual shades–pinks and blues that many artists might hesitate to use–but he used them effectively,” Bhatia remarks.

However, despite making countless additions to the art world, she believes he never received the recognition he deserved, unlike SH Raza, FN Souza, and MF Husain.“He [Kulkarni], was away from India for many years. Not that the others were not, but somehow he hasn’t been promoted as much,” Bhatia says.

The exhibition, she hopes, will remind people of his legacy.

This article is written by Pankil Jhajhria

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