In the 1960s, some artists turned to local traditions for an Indian abstract art. Which two artists did this in Delhi?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Biren De and G. R. Santosh
Option (1) M. F. Husain and Tyeb Mehta — Incorrect. Husain largely remained a figurative artist, and Tyeb Mehta kept moving between abstraction and figurative.
Option (2) Biren De and G. R. Santosh — Correct. Biren De and G. R. Santosh worked in Delhi, while K. C. S. Paniker did the same in Madras.
Option (3) Piloo Pochkhanawala and Krishna Reddy — Incorrect. The sculptor Pochkhanawala and the printmaker Krishna Reddy took up abstraction, but they are not named in this Delhi move.
Option (4) Ram Kumar and Satish Gujral — Incorrect. Ram Kumar and Satish Gujral are named as examples of eclecticism, borrowing ideas from many sources.
NCERT (2026-27): “Abstraction – A New Trend …Many Indian artists and critics grew worried about their imitation of modern art from the West and felt the need to establish an Indian identity in their art. In the 1960s, Biren De and G. R. Santosh in Delhi and K. C. S. Paniker in Madras moved in this direction when they turned to the past and local artistic traditions to create a unique Indian abstract art. … In that sense, eclecticism, in which an artist borrowed ideas from many sources, became an important feature of many Indian modernists, of which Ram Kumar, Satish Gujral, A. Ramachandran and Meera Mukherjee are some examples.” |