Dinkar Kowshik

Inherited from the artist 

New Delhi, India International Centre, Contextualizing Progressives: Indian Art in the Twentieth Century, 2019

P.R. Rao, Contemporary Indian Art, Published by the author, Hyderabad, 1969, pl. 199

Exhibition catalogue, Contextualizing Progressives: Indian Art in the Twentieth Century, Arts Glacerhi & Progressive Art Gallery, New Delhi, 2019, illustration unpaginated

Born in Karnataka in 1918, Dinkar Kowshik was an important teacher and artist who made an indelible impact on Indian art education. Inspired by Rabindranath Tagore, Nandalal Bose, Benode Behari Mukherjee, Ramkinkar Baij and P. Perumal, Kowshik became a student at Kala Bhavan, Santiniketan in 1940. His first teaching job was at Delhi Polytechnic (now Delhi College of Arts) where he became very close with Bhabesh Chandra Sanyal and Sailoz Mookherjea.

In 1949, Kowshik was among the founders and the first secretary of Delhi Silpi Chakra, and a founder of Triveni Kala Sangam along with Ravi Shankar, Vijay Raghav Rao, Krishna Shamrao Kulkarni and Sundari K. Shridharani in 1950. In 1964, Kowshik joined the Lucknow College of Arts and Crafts before returning to Kala Bhavan as the principal.

During his tenure, Kowshik refocused on contemporary art practices which revitalized the institution and encouraged young artists and fresh perspectives to flourish. Sarbari Roy Choudhury, Somnath Hore and Lalu Prasad Shaw were among the faculty that Kowshik invited for his mission, contributing to a familial camaraderie between teachers and students at the time.

Kowshik’s own work is part of the revolutionary legacy of the Bengal School of Art. The present lot highlights his unique application of oil paint and use of color and line to create an abstract landscape. Rich blue pigments and earthy tones coalesce between the branches of a tree-like subject, spreading across the canvas. Kowshik’s dedication to creative approaches shows in both his careers as an educator and an artist.