Paris Viswanathan
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Velu Viswanathan, popularly known as Paris Viswanathan (born 1 January 1940) is an Indian
painter Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...
, sculptor and filmmaker. He is considered by many as one of the prominent modern painters in India. He is a recipient of the Best Documentary Film Award of the Festival dei Popoli, Florence and the ''K. C. S. Paniker Award'' of the Kerala Lalithakala


Biography

V. Viswanathan was born in 1940 at Kadavoor,
Kollam Kollam (;), is an ancient seaport and the List of cities and towns in Kerala, fourth largest city in the Indian state of Kerala. Located on the southern tip of the Malabar Coast of the Arabian Sea, the city is on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake ...
in the south Indian state of Kerala. After early education, he joined the
Government College of Fine Arts, Chennai The Government College of Fine Arts (initially known as the Madras School of Art) in Chennai is the oldest art institution in India. The institution was established in 1850 by surgeon Alexander Hunter as a private art school. In 1852, after be ...
in 1960 where he had the opportunity to study under noted painter,
K. C. S. Paniker Kolozhi Cheerambathur Sankara Paniker (31 May 1911 – 16 January 1977) was an Indian metaphysical and abstract painter from Malabar District. He interpreted the country's age-old metaphysical and spiritual knowledge in the 1960s, when Indian a ...
. After securing a diploma from the institution in 1966, he assisted Paniker in setting up Cholamandal Artists' Village and moved into the village as one of the first batch of members. In 1967, he participated in
Biennale de Paris The ''Biennale de Paris'' (English: Paris Biennale) is a noted French art festival, established in 1959. In 1983, the organization ceased functions, until its reestablishment in 2000 with the first exhibition of the new era occurring in 2004. T ...
; He settled in the city, the next year and has been living there since then.


Legacy

Viswanathan has participated in many international and national art festivals, including
Biennale de Paris The ''Biennale de Paris'' (English: Paris Biennale) is a noted French art festival, established in 1959. In 1983, the organization ceased functions, until its reestablishment in 2000 with the first exhibition of the new era occurring in 2004. T ...
and the International Biennale of Engraving at
Ljubljana {{Infobox settlement , name = Ljubljana , official_name = , settlement_type = Capital city , image_skyline = {{multiple image , border = infobox , perrow = 1/2/2/1 , total_widt ...
and several art galleries such as Galerie, Ved Aaven,
Aarhus Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus municipality, Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and app ...
, Galerie de France, Galerie Stig Carlsson,
Höganäs Höganäs () is a locality and the seat of Höganäs Municipality, Scania County, Sweden. Its population was 14,107 in 2010. Höganäs is nationally known for its ceramics industry, Höganäs Keramik. Höganäs Keramik is part of Iittala Gr ...
,
Centre Georges Pompidou The Centre Pompidou (), more fully the (), also known as the Pompidou Centre in English and colloquially as Beaubourg, is a building complex in Paris, France. It was designed in the style of high-tech architecture by the architectural team of ...
, Vadehra Art Gallery, New Delhi and
National Gallery of Modern Art The National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) is the premier art gallery under Ministry of Culture, Government of India. The main museum at Jaipur House in New Delhi was established on 29 March 1954 by the Government of India, with subsequent b ...
have staged his one man shows and retrospectives. He was also involved with the ''Art Rises for Kerala'' (ARK) initiative at the 2019 edition of the
Kochi-Muziris Biennale The Kochi-Muziris Biennale is an international exhibition of contemporary art held in the city of Kochi in Kerala, India. It is the largest art exhibition in the country and the biggest contemporary art festival in Asia. The Kochi-Muziris Bienn ...
where his paintings were auctioned to raise funds for the reconstruction activities of the
Government of Kerala The Government of Kerala (abbreviated as GoK), also known as the Kerala Government, is the administrative body responsible for governing the Indian States and territories of India, state of Kerala. The government is led by a chief minister, who ...
in the wake of the
2018 Kerala floods On 16 August 2018, severe floods affected the south Indian state Kerala, due to unusually heavy rainfall during the monsoon season. It was the worst flood in Kerala in nearly a century. Over 483 people died, and about one million people were e ...
. He has also made a few films, starting with a series titled, ''The Pancha Bhoota'' consisting of 5 films, ''Ganga'' as well as a series titled ''Back to Elements''. The catalogue raisonné of the work of VISWANADHAN, always known and identified under this name and spelling, is being prepared b
Nadine Tarbouriech
member of the U.F.E - Union Française des Experts - in the categories of painting, cinema, photography and litterature. Viswanadhan work is represented in Paris and Brussels by Galeri
Nathalie Obadia
nd in New Delhi b
Nature Morte GalleryThe Sharjah Biennial 16 "to carry" dedicates a full pavilion to the work of Viswnadhan - curator Natasha Ginwala.


Awards and honours

Viswanathan received the award for the best documentary film at the Festival dei Popoli held at
Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...
, in 1986.
Kerala Lalithakala Akademi Kerala Lalithakala Akademi () is an autonomous cultural organization established in Kerala, India, in 1962. Its primary purpose is to promote and propagate fine arts such as painting, sculpture, and visual arts in the state. The Akademi funct ...
awarded him the inaugural ''K. C. S. Paniker Award'' in 2008. He was also honoured with the Chevalier des arts et letters by the French Government in 200

Got Raja Ravi Varma Award in 2018.


References


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Viswanathan, Paris 20th-century Indian painters Malayali people Artists from Kollam Living people Kochi-Muziris Biennale Painters from Kerala Indian male painters 1940 births Indian male sculptors Indian filmmakers 20th-century Indian sculptors Indian documentary film directors Government College of Fine Arts, Chennai alumni 20th-century Indian male artists