Shakti Burman

Shakti Burman

Shakti Burman was born in 1935 in Kolkata. He is a contemporary Indian artist who lives in France. He grew up in East Bengal which is now Bangladesh. Despite living in France for several years he has maintained strong ties with India and regularly exhibits his work. He is a fine lithographer who has the ability to achieve an incredible range of tonal and textural variations. Several books have been illustrated by him such as collection of Mallarme`s poems. Several portfolios of his lithographs have also been published.

His works are steeped in romanticism and fantasy. Europe and India are fused in his thoughts. From unlikely places exotic birds and blooms sprout. Sensuously painted women lie in a mythical landscape. The surface is textured that look like aging frescos.

He uses complementary colours, varied textures thereby holding out a dream world of harmony - a world that is an abode of abiding peace. The viewer feels assured of peace and happiness in the world of Burman`s paintings. The trees, the birds and the animals; the flowers; the open water bodies, the boats, the flutists and drummer boys are depicted in his works. Reality meets and blends with his dream world. Realism is very much a part of his paintings however he returns to his dream world time and again.

He says "My childhood memories are always there, mixed up with the realities of the day. In creative art, the role of memory is a recognised fact. But in my case, that of a painter working in a foreign city a vast distance away from his native milieu, memory is doubly potent in sustaining the creative life,". Over the years he has developed his own style and technique to project the world of his vision. Classical sculpture and painting have influenced his paintings that were visible in his paintings of the 1960s such as "Bodhisatva", "Tree of Knowledge", "Dream" and "Dream of Maya". French tapestry is visible in his paintings. Some of his paintings are illustrative. His paintings are mostly in oils. His own image, the people whom he knows and the historical characters are the themes used in his paintings.