Sakti Burman

Born in 1935, Sakti, was raised in undivided Bengal, graduated from the Government College of arts and crafts, Kolkata and later got admitted to Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux Arts, Paris in 1956 with hardwork, determination and at the persuasion of his brothers. His love for art remained through his childhood to the turmoils of partition culminating with him finally studying art academically. While the images in his paintings trace their way back to the stories in Indian as well as European mythology alongside his memories, he also claims to have had members of his family find a recurring appearance in his paintings. Transparency, earthly colours, overlapping figures, visual textures, pointillism, design, travel, and fantasy are some of the peculiar characteristics transcending into narratives. Burman has worked with multiple forms, including engraving, drawing, sculpture, and painting in a number of media. Along with addressing the role of religion and culture in his life, oils combined with acrylics, one of his most acclaimed works is an album of sixteen limited edition lithographic illustrations for the French translation of Rabindranath Tagore’s Gitanjali. Sakti has participated in several shows, some of the most recent including The Beholder’s Share by Jehangir Art Gallery and Art Musings in Mumbai in 2016; A Private Universe by Art Alive Gallery in New Delhi in 2015; Rituals and Reasons: Invoking the Sensual in Art, at Apparao Galleries in Chennai in 2014; The Wonder of it All, a retrospective exhibition by Pundole Art Gallery and Apparao Galleries in New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai in 2012, Archetype and Enraputured Gaze at Aicon Gallery in London and New York in 2009; Faces of Indian Art organised by Art Alive at the Visual Art Gallery, New Delhi; Understanding Oneness in Diversity at Kitab Mahal, Mumbai; An Evening in Paris …Rome…London at Gallery Sanskriti, Kolkata; and Resonance organised by Art Musings at Museum Gallery, Mumbai, all in 2007. Burman was awarded the Medaille d’Argent au Salon de Montmorency and the Prix des Etrangers, École des Beaux-Arts, Paris in 1956. Sakti Burman lives and works in Paris. The distinguished title of Knight of the Legion of Honour had been awarded to him in 2017 in recognition of his remarkable contributions to the blending of French, European, and Indian cultures in his work, as well as his efforts to foster lasting connections between France and India. Sakti Burman is also the uncle of the artist Jayasri Burman. You can browse through our gallery of Serigraphs to see more of his artworks and paintings along with other famous serigraph artists.