Natvar Bhavsar
Encyclopedia
Natvar Bhavsar is an India
n artist, based in Soho
, New York City
, noted as an abstract expressionist and color field
artist. Bhavsar's paintings appear in more than 800 private and public collections, including the collections of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, the Metropolitan Museum of Art
in New York, the Philadelphia Museum of Art
, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
in New York, the Museum of Contemporary Art
in Sydney, Australia, the Library of Congress
, and the Australian National Gallery. In addition, his works have been purchased and displayed by corporations such as the American Express Company, AT&T, Chase Manhattan Bank, and NBC. Bhavsar and his works have been the subject of books, including: Natvar Bhavsar: The Sound of Color, (Robert C. Morgan
, 2002) and Natvar Bhavsar: Painting and the Reality of Color, (Irving Sandler
, 1999).
in 1960. Bhavsar earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Design
in 1965.
Bhavsar attained prominence as an artist in India by age 19, working primarily in the Cubist vein. After moving to New York City, he became influenced by the freedom of abstract painting. His style evolved into abstract expressionism
and color field painting, and his works often feature a hazy object (absent of direct lines or geometric shapes) in the center of a solid canvas, that projects an astral-like mass of color.
Employing some techniques from the Indian tradition of sand painting, Bhavsar paints in an improvisational manner, "soaking the canvas with acrylic-based liquid binders that absorb and hold the fine pigment powder. He applies the base using a sifting technique with a screen, during which layers of fine, concentrated pigment are sprinkled and drizzled over the canvas (or paper), which is laid out on the floor so that the artist can walk around the painting and work on it from all sides."
Bhavsar primarily shows his work at the Sundaram Tagore Gallery in New York and the ACP Viviane Ehrli Gallery in Zurich, Switzerland, along with Pundole Art Gallery in Bombay, India. He has been exhibiting his works in one-man shows since 1970. In 2007, the Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum
at Rutgers University
sponsored an exhibition of about 50 of Bhavsar’s works. It was the first United States university to hold a one-man show of a South Asian artist.
Earlier in his career, Bhavsar was a John D. Rockefeller III Fund Fellow (1965 –1966), a Guggenheim Foundation
Fellow (1975 – 1976), and an Instructor of Art at the University of Rhode Island
(1967 – 1969). In 1980 and 1983, he participated in Executive Seminars at the Aspen Institute and, more recently, participated as a Cultural Leader at the World Economic Forums in Davos, Switzerland (2000) and New York (2002). Throughout his career, Bhavsar has associated with a number of acclaimed artists, most prominently, Mark Rothko
(1903 – 1970) and Barnett Newman
(1905 – 1970).
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n artist, based in Soho
Soho
Soho is an area of the City of Westminster and part of the West End of London. Long established as an entertainment district, for much of the 20th century Soho had a reputation for sex shops as well as night life and film industry. Since the early 1980s, the area has undergone considerable...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, noted as an abstract expressionist and color field
Color Field
Color Field painting is a style of abstract painting that emerged in New York City during the 1940s and 1950s. It was inspired by European modernism and closely related to Abstract Expressionism, while many of its notable early proponents were among the pioneering Abstract Expressionists...
artist. Bhavsar's paintings appear in more than 800 private and public collections, including the collections of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
in New York, the Philadelphia Museum of Art
Philadelphia Museum of Art
The Philadelphia Museum of Art is among the largest art museums in the United States. It is located at the west end of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia's Fairmount Park. The Museum was established in 1876 in conjunction with the Centennial Exposition of the same year...
, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum is a well-known museum located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City, United States. It is the permanent home to a renowned collection of Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, early Modern, and contemporary art and also features special exhibitions...
in New York, the Museum of Contemporary Art
Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney
The Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney, Australia is an Australian museum solely dedicated to exhibiting, interpreting and collecting contemporary art, both from across Australia and around the world...
in Sydney, Australia, the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
, and the Australian National Gallery. In addition, his works have been purchased and displayed by corporations such as the American Express Company, AT&T, Chase Manhattan Bank, and NBC. Bhavsar and his works have been the subject of books, including: Natvar Bhavsar: The Sound of Color, (Robert C. Morgan
Robert C. Morgan
Robert C. Morgan is an American art critic, art historian, curator, poet, and visual artist.-Background:Robert C. Morgan received his M.F.A. in Sculpture from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst in 1975 and his Ph.D. in contemporary art history from New York University in 1978...
, 2002) and Natvar Bhavsar: Painting and the Reality of Color, (Irving Sandler
Irving Sandler
Irving Sandler is an American art critic and educator. He has provided numerous first hand accounts of American art, particularly around the abstract expressionist circles of the 1950s, where he managed the Downtown Tanager Gallery and co-ordinated the New York artists' 'Club' from 1955 to its...
, 1999).
Background
Born 1934 in Gothava, India to a wealthy family, Natvar Bhavsar earned diplomas from Bombay State Higher Arts School in 1958 and 1959 and then earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Gujarat UniversityGujarat University
The Gujarat University is the statewide institution affiliating many reputed colleges across the state of Gujarat, India. It has been given a B++ ranking by National Assessment and Accreditation Council .-History:...
in 1960. Bhavsar earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Design
University of Pennsylvania School of Design
The University of Pennsylvania School of Design is the design school of the University of Pennsylvania. It is currently ranked 3rd in urban planning by The Best Colleges, 10th in urban planning by Planetizen, and 8th in architecture by DesignIntelligence...
in 1965.
Bhavsar attained prominence as an artist in India by age 19, working primarily in the Cubist vein. After moving to New York City, he became influenced by the freedom of abstract painting. His style evolved into abstract expressionism
Abstract expressionism
Abstract expressionism was an American post–World War II art movement. It was the first specifically American movement to achieve worldwide influence and put New York City at the center of the western art world, a role formerly filled by Paris...
and color field painting, and his works often feature a hazy object (absent of direct lines or geometric shapes) in the center of a solid canvas, that projects an astral-like mass of color.
Employing some techniques from the Indian tradition of sand painting, Bhavsar paints in an improvisational manner, "soaking the canvas with acrylic-based liquid binders that absorb and hold the fine pigment powder. He applies the base using a sifting technique with a screen, during which layers of fine, concentrated pigment are sprinkled and drizzled over the canvas (or paper), which is laid out on the floor so that the artist can walk around the painting and work on it from all sides."
Bhavsar primarily shows his work at the Sundaram Tagore Gallery in New York and the ACP Viviane Ehrli Gallery in Zurich, Switzerland, along with Pundole Art Gallery in Bombay, India. He has been exhibiting his works in one-man shows since 1970. In 2007, the Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum
Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum
The Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum is located on the Voorhees Mall of the campus of Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey. It was founded in 1966...
at Rutgers University
Rutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...
sponsored an exhibition of about 50 of Bhavsar’s works. It was the first United States university to hold a one-man show of a South Asian artist.
Earlier in his career, Bhavsar was a John D. Rockefeller III Fund Fellow (1965 –1966), a Guggenheim Foundation
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation was founded in 1925 by Mr. and Mrs. Simon Guggenheim in memory of their son, who died April 26, 1922...
Fellow (1975 – 1976), and an Instructor of Art at the University of Rhode Island
University of Rhode Island
The University of Rhode Island is the principal public research university in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. Its main campus is located in Kingston. Additional campuses include the Feinstein Campus in Providence, the Narragansett Bay Campus in Narragansett, and the W. Alton Jones Campus in West...
(1967 – 1969). In 1980 and 1983, he participated in Executive Seminars at the Aspen Institute and, more recently, participated as a Cultural Leader at the World Economic Forums in Davos, Switzerland (2000) and New York (2002). Throughout his career, Bhavsar has associated with a number of acclaimed artists, most prominently, Mark Rothko
Mark Rothko
Mark Rothko, born Marcus Rothkowitz , was a Russian-born American painter. He is classified as an abstract expressionist, although he himself rejected this label, and even resisted classification as an "abstract painter".- Childhood :Mark Rothko was born in Dvinsk, Vitebsk Province, Russian...
(1903 – 1970) and Barnett Newman
Barnett Newman
Barnett Newman was an American artist. He is seen as one of the major figures in abstract expressionism and one of the foremost of the color field painters.-Early life:...
(1905 – 1970).
Personal life
Bhavsar is married to Janet Brosious Bhavsar. The Bhavsars met in art class in the early 1960s, and she drove him to New York City on his first visit in 1963 to look at Picasso paintings at the Museum of Modern Art.Further reading
- Ratcliff, C. Mutability and Metaphor Radiant clouds of color typify the work of abstract painter Natvar Bhavsar, Art in America, 2003, Vol 91; Part 12, pages 80–83
- Sandler, Irving, Natvar Bhavsar: Painting and the Reality of Color, Fine Art Publishing (March 1999), ISBN 9057040611
External links
- Natvar Bhavsar on artnet
- Our Religion is Imbued with Color, Interview:Natvar Bhavsar, Rediff, January 15, 2004