Sketches, Scribbles, Drawings

K.G. Subramanyan is widely recognized as one of India's most major modern artists, an influential teacher, an astute writer on art, and an authority on the folk, tribal and craft traditions of India. This volume of his 'sketches, scribbles, drawings' spans the work of the last 30 years, with the bulk of the material coming from the period between 1980 and the present. The selection has been put together by the artist himself, with the aim of compiling a definitive collection. 

This volume includes his early sketches from 1968, the black-and-white drawings for his reverse paintings from 1980, his China, Japan, London and Oxford sketches, drawings of nature, and figure studies. It provides a rich variety of mediums and styles, from works in crayon and watercolour to pen and ink scribbles, brush drawings, notes, doodles and working drawings.

The volume opens with a thoughtful introduction by K.G. Subramanyan, reflecting on the importance and purpose of such sketches and drawings for an artist, and looking back on his experiences over a long and eminent career. There is also a substantial biographical sketch prepared by art historian and close associate R. Sivakumar, who has closely observed K. G. Subramanyan's oeuvre over the years.