1980 "Sun & the Beggar", Nehru Hall, Azamgarh (UP) and Academy Of Fine Arts, Calcutta in 1983.
"Amidst the Darkness", Senate Hall, Allahabad University, Allahabad.
"Recent paintings", Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai in 1991.
"Ganesha", Artists Centre, Mumbai in 1993.
"Undulations", Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai in 1994.
"My city, my childhood", Academy Of Fine Arts, Calcutta in 1996.
"Manushi & other paintings", Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai in 1997.
Works On Paper, Admit One Art Gallery, New York, USA in 1999.
"Recent Works", Katayun Gallery, Calcutta in 2001.
Selected Works, Kumar Gallery, New Delhi in 2004.
"Warli in Me and other paintings", Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai in 2004.
"Retrospective 1997-2007", Kumar Art Gallery in 2007.
"Recent Works", Museum Art Gallery, (Organized by Kumar Gallery) in 2009.
"Epic on the rock shelters", organized by Cymroza Art Gallery, Mumbai in 2014.
Group Exhibitions
1973, 74, 78, 80 Annual Art Exhibitions of State Lalit Kala Academy, U.P
All India Exhibition of Paintings, organised by Academy of Fine Arts, Calcutta in 1980-81.
All India Exhibition of Contemporary Arts organised by Birla Academy of Art and Culture, Calcutta in 1981.
"Art of Uttar Pradesh", organised jointly by the Central Lalit Kala Academy and State Lalit Kala Academy, under Inter State Cultural Exchange Programme in 1977-78.
Silver Jubilee Exhibition of State Lalit Kala Academy U.P (organised at Lucknow, Goa, Chennai, and Delhi) in 1990.
Art of Bengal, jointly organised by Art Today Art Gallery and Gallery Katayun, Delhi in 2001.
Art Access- V exhibition, organised by Birla Academy of Art & Culture, Mumbai in 2001.
Autumnal Applauds, organised by Katayun Gallery, Calcutta in 2001.
Jewels of Contemporary Indian Art, organised by Concern India Foundation, Mumbai in 2001.
Spirit of the Century, Kumar Art Gallery in 2004.
"Four Contemporary Artists from India", Hamail Art Gallery, Lahore, Pakistan in 2005.
2007, 08, 10 "Celebration", Kumar Art Gallery, Delhi.
Participated in 2nd Art Summit, New Delhi in 2011.
Group show at Hamail Art Gallery, Dubai in 2013.
Group show at Unicorn Gallery, Karachi, Pakistan in 2011.
Born in 1953, at Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh, India Education Graduated from Kanpur University in 1973 and received his Diploma in Fine Arts from the Government College of Arts and Crafts,
Born in 1953, at Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh, India Education Graduated from Kanpur University in 1973 and received his Diploma in Fine Arts from the Government College of Arts and Crafts, Kolkata.
Academics
Born at Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh in 1953, India, Ashok Bhowmick is a renowned artist known as a “Master of Cross-hatching”. Though many artists ranging from Rembrandt to Rabindranath Tagore and F.N Souza used style in their paintings, in Bhowmick’s works it is more than a technique and it has got a unique identity as a medium. Irrespective of the medium or the size of the work, he brilliantly uses this unique style, rendered with pen and ink.
After applying solid colour, he adds texture and then meticulously draws numerous lines, thus adding deep and dark shadows to the subjects and creating a lighter effect. While the darker spaces are created with dense mesh of lines, the lighter areas are achieved through its controlled use, thus developing his inimitable signature style. Bhowmick uses nibs that are especially designed for cross-hatching.
On a closer look one can experience a sense of silence in his paintings. Bhowmick believes that urban art is often the expression of isolated or socially or spiritually uprooted individuals deprived of material life around, with no responsibility whatsoever.
At the same time, there is the expression of a revivalist in his works, and it also reflects his insight on Indian tradition in art. He has closely studied the cave paintings from Indus Valley Civilisation and Bronze Age and these works play an influential role in his paintings. However, he brings about a contemporary character to it. Bhowmick’s philosophy is that the everlasting symbols of the old culture are still meaningful. However, they are badly in need of renewal in fresh contemporary forms, and only artists can do so, for “they bring back the dead wood of abstraction to life”, he says.
On the other hand, he uses a wide range of images, ranging from animals, birds, human beings, puppets and buildings in his paintings, which are generally centred on the ‘childhood memories’, though not nostalgically.
Hues like bright red, vivid blues, minty greens and subtle greys add to the vibrancy of his paintings. In the application of colour also he has his own methods. He first paints a single solid colour or a combination of two contrasting colours in the background and then paints his subjects.
“The painter has a fair technical ability to play on the keyboard of our moods. His sundry compositional moves are put to humanising uses, and are not neutral aesthetic strategies alone, as with some other painters,” renowned art critic Keshav Malik observed once.
The way he manipulates and renders his images is quite distinct, and while he makes living objects appear frozen, the artists adds vigour to inactive, lifeless elements.
Apart from being an exceptionally good painter, he is also an experimental sculptor and a insightful intellectual and a prolific writer.
“You don’t need to understand a picture, you should experience it. If the artist had a story to share, he could’ve become a storyteller,” he says.
His work is largely figurative. What makes it stand apart from the works of other contemporary artists from the Bengal School of art, to which he belongs, is its close connection to the political situation in the state.
Born in 1953, at Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh, India Education Graduated from Kanpur University in 1973 and received his Diploma in Fine Arts from the Government College of Arts and Crafts,
Born in 1953, at Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh, India Education Graduated from Kanpur University in 1973 and received his Diploma in Fine Arts from the Government College of Arts and Crafts, Kolkata.
Academics
Born at Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh in 1953, India, Ashok Bhowmick is a renowned artist known as a “Master of Cross-hatching”. Though many artists ranging from Rembrandt to Rabindranath Tagore and F.N Souza used style in their paintings, in Bhowmick’s works it is more than a technique and it has got a unique identity as a medium. Irrespective of the medium or the size of the work, he brilliantly uses this unique style, rendered with pen and ink.
After applying solid colour, he adds texture and then meticulously draws numerous lines, thus adding deep and dark shadows to the subjects and creating a lighter effect. While the darker spaces are created with dense mesh of lines, the lighter areas are achieved through its controlled use, thus developing his inimitable signature style. Bhowmick uses nibs that are especially designed for cross-hatching.
On a closer look one can experience a sense of silence in his paintings. Bhowmick believes that urban art is often the expression of isolated or socially or spiritually uprooted individuals deprived of material life around, with no responsibility whatsoever.
At the same time, there is the expression of a revivalist in his works, and it also reflects his insight on Indian tradition in art. He has closely studied the cave paintings from Indus Valley Civilisation and Bronze Age and these works play an influential role in his paintings. However, he brings about a contemporary character to it. Bhowmick’s philosophy is that the everlasting symbols of the old culture are still meaningful. However, they are badly in need of renewal in fresh contemporary forms, and only artists can do so, for “they bring back the dead wood of abstraction to life”, he says.
On the other hand, he uses a wide range of images, ranging from animals, birds, human beings, puppets and buildings in his paintings, which are generally centred on the ‘childhood memories’, though not nostalgically.
Hues like bright red, vivid blues, minty greens and subtle greys add to the vibrancy of his paintings. In the application of colour also he has his own methods. He first paints a single solid colour or a combination of two contrasting colours in the background and then paints his subjects.
“The painter has a fair technical ability to play on the keyboard of our moods. His sundry compositional moves are put to humanising uses, and are not neutral aesthetic strategies alone, as with some other painters,” renowned art critic Keshav Malik observed once.
The way he manipulates and renders his images is quite distinct, and while he makes living objects appear frozen, the artists adds vigour to inactive, lifeless elements.
Apart from being an exceptionally good painter, he is also an experimental sculptor and a insightful intellectual and a prolific writer.
“You don’t need to understand a picture, you should experience it. If the artist had a story to share, he could’ve become a storyteller,” he says.
His work is largely figurative. What makes it stand apart from the works of other contemporary artists from the Bengal School of art, to which he belongs, is its close connection to the political situation in the state.
Awards
Governor’s Award, Calcutta in 1974.
Exhibitions
Solo Exhibitions
"Ashok – 74", Kanpur in 1974.
1980 "Sun & the Beggar", Nehru Hall, Azamgarh (UP) and Academy Of Fine Arts, Calcutta in 1983.
"Amidst the Darkness", Senate Hall, Allahabad University, Allahabad.
"Recent paintings", Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai in 1991.
"Ganesha", Artists Centre, Mumbai in 1993.
"Undulations", Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai in 1994.
"My city, my childhood", Academy Of Fine Arts, Calcutta in 1996.
"Manushi & other paintings", Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai in 1997.
Works On Paper, Admit One Art Gallery, New York, USA in 1999.
"Recent Works", Katayun Gallery, Calcutta in 2001.
Selected Works, Kumar Gallery, New Delhi in 2004.
"Warli in Me and other paintings", Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai in 2004.
"Retrospective 1997-2007", Kumar Art Gallery in 2007.
"Recent Works", Museum Art Gallery, (Organized by Kumar Gallery) in 2009.
"Epic on the rock shelters", organized by Cymroza Art Gallery, Mumbai in 2014.
Group Exhibitions
1973, 74, 78, 80 Annual Art Exhibitions of State Lalit Kala Academy, U.P
All India Exhibition of Paintings, organised by Academy of Fine Arts, Calcutta in 1980-81.
All India Exhibition of Contemporary Arts organised by Birla Academy of Art and Culture, Calcutta in 1981.
"Art of Uttar Pradesh", organised jointly by the Central Lalit Kala Academy and State Lalit Kala Academy, under Inter State Cultural Exchange Programme in 1977-78.
Silver Jubilee Exhibition of State Lalit Kala Academy U.P (organised at Lucknow, Goa, Chennai, and Delhi) in 1990.
Art of Bengal, jointly organised by Art Today Art Gallery and Gallery Katayun, Delhi in 2001.
Art Access- V exhibition, organised by Birla Academy of Art & Culture, Mumbai in 2001.
Autumnal Applauds, organised by Katayun Gallery, Calcutta in 2001.
Jewels of Contemporary Indian Art, organised by Concern India Foundation, Mumbai in 2001.
Spirit of the Century, Kumar Art Gallery in 2004.
"Four Contemporary Artists from India", Hamail Art Gallery, Lahore, Pakistan in 2005.
2007, 08, 10 "Celebration", Kumar Art Gallery, Delhi.
Participated in 2nd Art Summit, New Delhi in 2011.
Group show at Hamail Art Gallery, Dubai in 2013.
Group show at Unicorn Gallery, Karachi, Pakistan in 2011.
Acrylic, pen and ink, cross hatch on canvas,
36 x 48 Inches
Express Interest
Untitled
Acrylic, pen and ink, cross hatch on canvas,
36 x 36 inches
Express Interest
Untitled
Acrylic, pen and ink, cross hatch on canvas,
36 x 36 inches
Express Interest
Untitled
Acrylic, pen and ink, cross hatch on canvas,
36 x 24 inches
Express Interest
Untitled
Acrylic, pen and ink, cross hatch on canvas,
36 x 24 inches
Express Interest
Untitled
Acrylic, pen and ink, cross hatch on canvas,
24 x 18 inches
Express Interest
Untitled
Acrylic, pen and ink, cross hatch on canvas,
24 x 18 inches
Express Interest
Untitled
Acrylic, pen and ink, cross hatch on canvas,
24 x 24 inches
Express Interest
Untitled
Acrylic, pen and ink, cross hatch on canvas,
24 x 24 inches
Express Interest
Untitled
Acrylic, pen and ink, cross hatch on canvas,
24 x 24 inches
Express Interest
Untitled
Acrylic, pen and ink, cross hatch on canvas,
24 x 24 inches
Express Interest
Untiled
Acrylic, pen and ink, cross hatch on canvas,
36 x 36 inches
Express Interest
Untitled
Acrylic, pen and ink, cross hatch on canvas,
24 x 18 inches
Express Interest
Untitled
Acrylic, pen and ink, cross hatch on canvas,
24 x 24 inches
Express Interest
Dotwalk Shows
Exhibitions
Solo Exhibitions
"Ashok – 74", Kanpur in 1974.
1980 "Sun & the Beggar", Nehru Hall, Azamgarh (UP) and Academy Of Fine Arts, Calcutta in 1983.
"Amidst the Darkness", Senate Hall, Allahabad University, Allahabad.
"Recent paintings", Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai in 1991.
"Ganesha", Artists Centre, Mumbai in 1993.
"Undulations", Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai in 1994.
"My city, my childhood", Academy Of Fine Arts, Calcutta in 1996.
"Manushi & other paintings", Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai in 1997.
Works On Paper, Admit One Art Gallery, New York, USA in 1999.
"Recent Works", Katayun Gallery, Calcutta in 2001.
Selected Works, Kumar Gallery, New Delhi in 2004.
"Warli in Me and other paintings", Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai in 2004.
"Retrospective 1997-2007", Kumar Art Gallery in 2007.
"Recent Works", Museum Art Gallery, (Organized by Kumar Gallery) in 2009.
"Epic on the rock shelters", organized by Cymroza Art Gallery, Mumbai in 2014.
Group Exhibitions
1973, 74, 78, 80 Annual Art Exhibitions of State Lalit Kala Academy, U.P
All India Exhibition of Paintings, organised by Academy of Fine Arts, Calcutta in 1980-81.
All India Exhibition of Contemporary Arts organised by Birla Academy of Art and Culture, Calcutta in 1981.
"Art of Uttar Pradesh", organised jointly by the Central Lalit Kala Academy and State Lalit Kala Academy, under Inter State Cultural Exchange Programme in 1977-78.
Silver Jubilee Exhibition of State Lalit Kala Academy U.P (organised at Lucknow, Goa, Chennai, and Delhi) in 1990.
Art of Bengal, jointly organised by Art Today Art Gallery and Gallery Katayun, Delhi in 2001.
Art Access- V exhibition, organised by Birla Academy of Art & Culture, Mumbai in 2001.
Autumnal Applauds, organised by Katayun Gallery, Calcutta in 2001.
Jewels of Contemporary Indian Art, organised by Concern India Foundation, Mumbai in 2001.
Spirit of the Century, Kumar Art Gallery in 2004.
"Four Contemporary Artists from India", Hamail Art Gallery, Lahore, Pakistan in 2005.
2007, 08, 10 "Celebration", Kumar Art Gallery, Delhi.
Participated in 2nd Art Summit, New Delhi in 2011.
Group show at Hamail Art Gallery, Dubai in 2013.
Group show at Unicorn Gallery, Karachi, Pakistan in 2011.