A Tribute to the Legacy of Syed Haider Raza

An artist, a philanthropist, a person for whom, art resided in his soul. A tribute to the ace artist by surfaces reporter.

With the demise of Syed Haider Raza, on July 23, 2016 in New Delhi, at the age of 94, India has lost one of its most globally-acclaimed artists and left a void in the creative space. Despite spending most part of his life in France, he was deeply associated with the Indian culture which was well reflected in all his paintings – more so towards the late 70's. He drew inspiration from Indian philosophy and spirituality.

Beyond all the accolades and awards, perhaps, his biggest contribution to Indian art was infusing modernist creativity rooted in our own culture, which led to resurgence of what we see now as Indian Contemporary art. He redefined the notion of modernism with his deeply spiritual and intellectual quest for artistic expression.

INITIAL LIFE 

Born to a forest officer, based in Mandala district in Madhya Pradesh, he completed his schoolings at Damoh in Madhya Pradesh. Raza received his formal training in painting at the Nagpur School of Art (1939-1943) at Nagpur and Sir J. J. School of Art (1943-1947) in Mumbai. During his stay at the Sir J.J. School, he cofounded Progressive Artist Group (PAG) of Bombay in 1947. This group set out to break free from the influences of European realism in Indian art and bring Indian inner vision into the art. During those days, Raza experimented with the Western modernism, which was moving away from expressionism and towards abstraction.