Abani Sen

Abani Sen (1905-1972)  was born in Bangladesh and received his art training from the Government School of Art. At the same institute, he was conferred with the Director of Public Instructions Scholarship. Sen's work has been showcased at a number of exhibitions including Surrey Art Gallery, British Columbia, Taj Palace Intercontinental, New Delhi, among other reputed venues. 

In 1931, Sen organized an exhibition under the patronage of ‘Young Artists Union’ at the Town Hall, Calcutta. Attended by Maharajas of Tripura and Nepal along with many eminent artists and journalists, the show was exceptionally successful. Owing to the same, Sen was motivated to conduct yet another exhibition in 1933, under the banner of Art Rebel Centre, which poised as a counterpoint to the Neo-Bengal school.

Considered to be one of the old masters of Indian Art, his paintings, which were created fifty or more years ago, still gleam with refreshing modernism and contemporary gist. As an artist, he was equally realistic, romantic and a pure stylist. Sen has been recognized as an influential exponent of realism with social commitment. Also, his voluminous depiction of animals was uncommon for artists from the last century. Bulls and horses were his relentless muses! A palpable reference to European modernists effervesces in his style figuration, form and representation.

Eclectic yet selective, Sen employed pencil, charcoal, crayons, pen and ink, watercolours, pastels, and oils to render and generate chaotic yet serene compositions, which faultlessly describe his post-impressionist oeuvre. Sen believed in transforming himself into the subjects he chose to paint, wherein he found an unremitting joy in the process of surrendering to his paintings.

Spanning nearly five decades of an art career, he won many awards and recognitions in India. In 1949, Abani Sen was awarded the reputed  Governor General's Plaque.