Description :

H.A. Gade (1917–2001) was one of India's pioneering modern and abstract artists and a founding member of the Progressive Artists' Group. Born in Amravati, Maharashtra, he initially studied Science, earning a Bachelor of Science degree from Nagpur University in 1939, before pursuing art at the Nagpur School of Art. After teaching in Jabalpur, he completed his Fine Arts diploma and master's degree by 1950. Inspired by artists such as S.H. Raza and Walter Langhammer, Gade began with watercolours before adopting oil painting. His landscapes, influenced by his extensive travels across India, were celebrated for their vibrant colours, geometric structures, and expressive use of brushwork and palette knives. Drawing upon his scientific background and the writings of Roger Fry, he developed a distinctive style with Cubist influences. While known for landscapes, he also depicted the poverty and slums of post-independence Mumbai. He took part in numerous exhibitions in India and abroad including Salon-de-Mai in Paris and Stanford University in 1949 and the Venice Biennale in 1954. He received the Gold Medal at the Annual Exhibition of the Bombay Art Society in 1956, an award at the Maharashtra State Art Exhibition as well as an award at the Saigon Biennale in 1962. He passed away in 2001.