Padma Bhushan awardee Akbar Padamsee passes away at 91

New Delhi: Akbar Padamsee, one of India’s finest contemporary artists, recipient of the Padma Bhushan honor passed away in Coimbatore on the evening of January 6 at the age of 91. A pass-out of JJ School of art, this Mumbai-based painter, who also spent considerable time in Paris was one of the pioneers of modern Indian art along with MF Husain and FN Souza and part of the Progressive Artists Group. Born in 1928 in Mumbai, in an earlier interview with this correspondent, Akbar Padamsee stressed the need for an artist to continuously reinvent himself. “The one who creates cannot afford to be lazy. There is so much to explore, both outside and inside,” he had said.

Arrested by the Mumbai Police for ‘obscenity’ during his first solo exhibition at the Jehangir Art Gallery (for the paintings ‘Lovers -1’ and ‘Lovers-2’), Padamsee was let go by the judge after MF Husain testified in his favor. He, however, preferred to keep a low profile. Working in diverse mediums including oil, watercolor and computer graphics, Padamsee, who was also a sculptor, lithographer, filmmaker, and photographer set up the Vision Exchange Workshop for artists and filmmakers.

The artist, who was primarily interested in constructing form took to drawing at the age of four, was well known for his meta scopes (combining cityscapes and landscapes), and was not averse to using the latest technology. “I have always believed in continuously updating myself. There is little point in being averse to using the latest tools.” (IANS)

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