Bombay Progressive Artists' Group

also: Progressive Artists' Group · PAG

school 1947-1956 Bombay India

The Progressive Artists' Group was formed in Bombay in 1947, months after Indian independence and Partition, by six founders: F. N. Souza, S. H. Raza, M. F. Husain, K. H. Ara, H. A. Gade and the sculptor S. K. Bakre. Rejecting the revivalist nationalism of the Bengal school, they pledged to 'paint with absolute freedom for content and technique' and to engage internationally, synthesizing Indian art history with Post-Impressionism, Cubism and Expressionism. Three exhibitions followed - Bombay in 1948, Kolkata in 1950 and a last show in 1953 - before the founders scattered abroad and the group disbanded in 1956. Its members and followers, from Tyeb Mehta to Vasudeo Gaitonde, defined modern Indian art, and Souza's Birth remains among its most celebrated paintings.

Bombay Progressive Artists Group
Bombay Progressive Artists GroupPublic domain (credit: Unknown author Unknown author) · source

Defining characteristics

  • Deliberate stylistic pluralism - from Souza's raw Expressionism to Gaitonde's pure abstraction
  • European modernist idioms (Cubism, Post-Impressionism, Expressionism) fused with Indian subjects
  • Bold, gestural paint handling and vivid, non-naturalistic colour
  • Indian imagery - epics, village life, figures, landscapes - carried in modern form
  • Rejection of academic finish and revivalist sentiment

Key figures

  • F. N. Souza (1924-2002) — Co-founder whose brash Expressionism set the group's tone
  • S. H. Raza (1922-2016) — Co-founder who later carried Indian abstraction to Paris
  • M. F. Husain (1915-2011) — Co-founder who became modern India's most celebrated painter
  • K. H. Ara (1914-1985) — Co-founder known for nudes and still lifes in vivid colour
  • S. K. Bakre (1920-2007) — Sculptor, the group's only non-painter among the founders

Example works

  • Birth — F. N. Souza (1955)

Sources

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