Renowned artist Satish Gujral dies in Delhi home

Artist and architect Satish Gujral, renowned for his versatility across different mediums, has died of old age reasons in his Delhi home, a member of his family said on Friday. He was 94.

Gujral, one of India's best known artists, died on Thursday night.

He is survived by his wife Kiran, daughters Alpana and Raseel and son Mohit.

The noted painter and architect passed away peacefully at 10.30 last night in his home. He died of old age, the artist's nephew and Rajya Sabha MP Naresh Gujral told PTI.

The last rites will be held on Friday at 2 pm at the Lodhi Crematorium, he added.

 

Gujral, who was awarded the Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian honour, was an architect, painter, muralist, sculptor and graphic artist.

His artworks were heavily inspired by the turbulence of his early years, including the illness that impaired his hearing as a child and the Partition of the subcontinent.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among those who condoled the death of the artist.

"Satish Gujral Ji was versatile and multifaceted. He was admired for his creativity as well as the determination with which he overcame adversity," Modi wrote on Twitter.

He said Gujral's intellectual thirst took him far and wide, yet he remained attached to his roots.

"Saddened by his demise. Om Shanti," the prime minister added.

Gujral's familiar works include the alphabet mural on the outside wall of the Delhi High Court. He also designed the Belgian Embassy in Delhi.

Unlike many of his peers, who went to Paris or London in the early 1950s, Gujral went to Mexico City to study with Diego Rivera and Siqueiros. Gujral's was a versatile practice spanning painting, sculpture and architecture. RIP, curator and artist Ranjit Hoskote said on Twitter.

Adwaita Gadnayak, director general of Delhi's National Gallery of Modern Art, said the artist's brilliance lay in his ability to use his creativity to the fullest in many forms and ways.

His highlight happened in 1952, when he got a scholarship to study at the revered Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico City, where he was apprenticed under renowned artists Diego Rivera and David Alfaro Siqueiros - who were remarkable figures of the 20th-century art scene. To have Frida Kahlo and Octavio Paz as his friends became the important point of synergy, he said.