MADAN LAL

His mind is often as blank as the canvas before the first stroke of brush stirs up some deep-rooted emotion in him that comes across in enchanting use of bright colors. Chandigarh-based painter, Madan Lal's art may be rooted in Sufism but global exposure over the years has made him open to experimenting, having held exhibitions of his works in Germany, England, and Sweden.

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“I have no focal point in my paintings and my creations reflect what I feel at that moment, the complexities of human relationships and life. When I start painting, I start with a blank canvas. I first envision an abstract concept in my mind, and as I add paint to the canvas, a more concrete form starts appearing. That is how I would trace my progression in art,” he explains.

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Chandigarh city has had a deep influence on Lal ever since he moved there in 1982, to study at the prestigious Government College of Art. The recognition he got at exhibitions in the early days gave him the encouragement to refine his craft with time. His paintings moved from touching on abstract concepts like music towards a relatively tangible topic in urban musing with love for the first planned city of the country somewhere at the core of it.

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“Indian art is very distinct from other cultures. Indian artists are still rooted in tradition, which comes across in the colors, symbols, and forms that we use,” he asserts.

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Sufism is well and alive in his works too. “I hail from Punjab, and Sufism is seeped into our literature, our culture,” Lal explains. “Sufism is not limited to any religion; it is a way of life. Right from childhood, it is inculcated into our creative outcomes.” Hailing from the small town of Talwandi Bhai (Ferozepur) in Punjab, Lal has taken his work across the country and the Punjabi spiritualism tends to come across every time. The painter explains “Sufism is well and alive in my works. I hail from Punjab, and Sufism seeps into our literature, our culture, Sufism is not limited to any religion; it is a way of life. Right from childhood, it is inculcated into our creative outcomes.”

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The artist’s trademark bright colors where the vivid peacock blues, grassy greens, flaming orange, yellow, pinks, and reds come together beautifully as if in a piece of music and make his works stand apart. Using acrylics and water-drawings, his paintings abound with lush richness in form, style, and spirit, and his figures, despite the long journey ahead, do not give way to grief. Instead, there is buoyancy in the works with the person holding onto all that is dear in life, not material but allegorical.

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Indeed, there is a deeper sense to life that he wishes to convey and one that comes to him when he begins his riyaz at dawn. “I have been getting up at 4 am every day now for the last 15 years because early morning is the time when the mind is in that sweet state, neither asleep nor awake when you are not tied to this earth but are in a realm far away from this material world” he asserts. 

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Awards:

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• 2017 - 58th National Akademi Award by Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi 

• 2016  - Silver medal from Prafulla Dahanukar Art Foundation 

• 2015  - Emerging Artist Award from Prafulla Dahanukar Art Foundation 

• 2001 - Gold medal from All India Exhibition by Avantika, New Delhi 

• 2000 - All India Millennium Drawings by PLKA & Lalit Kala Academy, New Delhi 

• 2000 - All India Exhibition By AIFACS at Chandigarh. 

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Honors: 

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• 2000-2003 - Secretary, Punjab Lalit Kala academy

• 2003-2006 - Secretary, Chandigarh Lalit Kala Akademi 

• 2012-2018 - Vice-Chairman, Chandigarh Lalit Kala Akademi