Grosvenor Gallery is pleased to announce its return for the 5th consecutive year to the 7th Edition of the India Art Fair.
Our star work will be a freshly painted large canvas by the master Krishen Khanna commissioned for the art fair. The painting captures a group of Bandwallas in their bright uniforms playing various instruments on their way to a wedding procession.
This is the first time that The Grosvenor Gallery will be exhibiting the work of Krishen Khanna, and we are delighted to have been given this opportunity to work with such a senior and respected figure of 20th Century Indian Modernism.
Krishen Khanna was a member of the Progressive Artists Group which was founded by F.N Souza in 1947. The group captured the spirit of Indian Independence, breaking with colonial rule and establishing a new Modern language for that generation. They opened the door to new ideas and today's generation owe their visual freedom to this group.
The Bandwalla has become a recurrent theme in Krishen Khanna's oeuvre. Khanna's choice of subject has mostly been inspired by the experiences of the daily life and pathos of the common man. The Bandwallas are an everyday sight all across the country, they are comic and bold and his portrayal of them is superb in terms of their bright colourful uniforms, gold epaulettes and brass buttons right down to their often tired expressions as they belt out the same tunes repeatedly for one wedding procession after another. His vibrant canvases always make the viewer feel as though they are a part of the show.
Other works on display will be by artist such as F.N Souza, M.F Husain, S.H Raza, Shibu Natesan, Dhruva Mistry, Laxma Goud, Bhupen Khakhar and Olivia Fraser.
