Manjit Bawa was a painter born in Dhuri, Punjab. His luminous works on canvas represent a unique exploration of color, form and space, drawing the viewer into an intimate experience of the artist's world.
Bhavna - VII (2000)
Bawa was encouraged by his older brothers to pursue art. He attended the College of Art, New Delhi in 1958.
He studied under Abani Sen, who was very influential on the artist’s distinct style, and encouraged him to embrace figurativism during a time when abstraction was dominant.
Bawa studied serigraphy at the London School of Printing, Essex and worked in London as a printmaker from 1967 to 1971.
Upon his return to India in 1971, he drew inspiration from Indian mythology and Sufi philosophy.
Dharma and the God (1984)
He was one of the first painters to break out of the dominant grays and browns and opted for more traditionally Indian colors like pinks, reds and violet.
Lion with Fire Ring, Oil on canvas
The artist reinvented the free floating form, which later became figures, by incorporating his early study of the forms and colors of Rajput and Pahari miniature paintings.
Untitled, oil on canvas (1998)