Indian Forest

Born in 1922 in Mandla district in Madhya Pradesh to a father who worked as a forest ranger, Raza’s childhood experiences brought an interest in nature to his practice. Raza’s early landscapes are expressionistic, using colour and brush strokes to imbue emotion. While studying at the Sir JJ School of Art from 1943 to ’47, Raza painted Forest in fluid watercolours Sayed Haider Raza, “S H Raza” is one of the most respected Modernists of India and is celebrated for his range of styles and the uniqueness of his vision. His early forms reflect a mastery of abstraction and after years of travel, exploration, and experimentation, he returned to Indian visual idioms for inspiration in the late 1970s, culling from tantric imagery. SH Raza looked to forms as the bindu (seminal source of energy), beej (seed), and garbagraha (sanctum sanctorum or hallowed space) for inspiration. Furthermore, he ascribed color with symbolic meaning and transformed local visual traditions into universal yet deeply personal spiritual iconographies.)

Sayed Haider Raza, “S H Raza” is one of the most respected Modernists of India and is celebrated for his range of styles and the uniqueness of his vision. His early forms reflect a mastery of abstraction and after years of travel, exploration, and experimentation, he returned to Indian visual idioms for inspiration in the late 1970s, culling from tantric imagery. SH Raza looked to forms as the bindu (seminal source of energy), beej (seed), and garbagraha (sanctum sanctorum or hallowed space) for inspiration. Furthermore, he ascribed color with symbolic meaning and transformed local visual traditions into universal yet deeply personal spiritual iconographies.)