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Daily Record
15 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Record
BBC Antiques Roadshow guest stunned as mum's portrait worth five-figure sum
Antiques Roadshow expert Amin Jaffer valued one man''s painting of his mum and left him speechless An Antiques Roadshow expert has pieced together the intriguing backstory of an artist, as they revealed the true value of a man's portrait of his mother. The popular BBC show was in Arley Hall in Cheshire for its latest instalment, where Amin Jaffer was on hand. When taking a closer look at the woman's portrait, the expert remarked: "You might think you're looking at a portrait by a European artist of the 1930s. In actual fact, this painting was done by an Indian artist in the 1950s." He then asked: "It's obviously a portrait. Can you tell me something about the sitter?" which led the owner to share: "Yes, the sitter is my mother. It was painted in India. The artist worked for Grindlays Bank which was where my father worked." Jaffer revealed that the painting was the work of Indian artist Krishen Khanna, noting that the guest's mother had tried to keep in touch with him over the years after posing for the portrait, reports Devon Live. Jaffer further added: "And the story of Grindlays Bank is fascinating because Krishen Khanna, his family originally came from Lahore. "With the separation of India and Pakistan, they moved to Shimla where he worked in Grindlays Bank. Well the artist gives up banking in 1960 and becomes a professional painter. "He takes the leap, although he had very little money and took that big step to become a professional artist and of course, most of the works we know of his date from that later period, from the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, etc. "It's extremely rare to find a picture from Krishen Khanna from 1954, from this experimental phase." The expert shared that after attending several evening art classes, Khanna emerged as "a really important figure" often hailed as "one of the great modern painters of India". He continued: "It's a fascinating picture, it's very, very much rooted in European painting of the 1930s. It has a very, very luminous effect with this very thick painting. "Krishen Khanna has become a big name and what's happened is the whole market for modern Indian painting has gone through the roof. "This is partly due to the emergence of private museums in India, and the Indian diaspora, including Indians in Britain and America, in South East Asia, who are keen to reconnect with their modern heritage and have begun collecting." When quizzed on the projected value of the artwork, the guest candidly admitted: "None. None whatsoever. It's never been valued. "I've mentioned to my mother that I might bring it here today and she said 'Go ahead. See what happens.' But no idea whatsoever." Jaffer then continued with the official valuation, declaring: "Well I think she would be happy to know that were it to be offered at auction, it would probably be within the estimate of something like £30,000 to £50,000 today." The audience, including the man's wife, let out gasps at the jaw-dropping valuation, whilst the owner himself maintained his composure. Following a brief silence, he uttered: "Crikey." He then glanced towards his spouse, who enquired: "Are you shocked or am I?" Jaffer observed: "I think you're going to make her a very happy lady today", prompting the guest to reply: "Thank you very much indeed. She will be." The crowd burst into applause as he stared at the artwork in amazement.
Daily Mirror
20 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Antiques Roadshow guest barely reacts as mum's portrait fetches five-figure sum
An Antiques Roadshow expert was on hand to discuss a painting that had a very personal connection to its owner. WARNING: This article contains spoilers from Antiques Roadshow. An Antiques Roadshow guest didn't quite know what to say when he discovered just how much his artwork was worth. The BBC team had set up shop at Arley Hall in Cheshire, where expert Amin Jaffer was presented with an artwork that held more than met the eye. Upon seeing the portrait of a woman, Jaffer noted: "You might think you're looking at a portrait by a European artist of the 1930s. In actual fact, this painting was done by an Indian artist in the 1950s." He then asked the guest about the subject of the portrait, to which the guest replied: "Yes, the sitter's my mother. It was painted in India. The artist worked for Grindlays bank which was where my father worked." Jaffer revealed that the artist was none other than Krishen Khanna, an Indian painter who had maintained contact with the guest's mother after painting her portrait. He shared: "And the story of Grindlays Bank is fascinating because Krishen Khanna, his family originally came from Lahore. "With the separation of India and Pakistan, they moved to Shimla where he worked in Grindlays Bank. Well the artist gives up banking in 1960 and becomes a professional painter. "He takes the leap, although he had very little money and took that big step to become a professional artist and of course, most of the works we know of his, date from that later period, from the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, etc. "It's extremely rare to find a picture from Krishen Khanna from 1954, from this experimental phase." The specialist revealed that, following a handful of evening art classes, Khanna became "a really important figure" frequently regarded as "one of the great modern painters of India". He added: "It's a fascinating picture, it's very, very much rooted in European painting of the 1930s. It has a very, very luminous effect with this very thick painting. "Krishen Khanna has become a big name and what's happened is the whole market for modern Indian painting has gone through the roof. "Partly with the birth of private museums in India, with the Indian diaspora, Indians in Britain and America, in south east Asia, who want to reclaim some of this modern heritage and have started to collect." When asked whether he had any notion of the artwork's potential value, the visitor honestly responded: "None. None whatsoever. It's never been valued. "I've mentioned to my mother that I might bring it here today and she said 'Go ahead. See what happens.' But no idea whatsoever." Jaffer then gave his official valuation, stating: "Well I think she would be happy to know that were it to be offered at auction, it would probably be within the estimate of something like £30,000 to £50,000 today." The crowd, including the guest's wife, gasped in surprise at the staggering figures, but the owner himself remained stoic. After a moment, he simply said: "Crikey." He then turned to his wife, who asked: "Are you shocked or am I?. Jaffer remarked: "I think you're going to make her a very happy lady today", to which the guest responded: "Thank you very much indeed. She will be." The audience erupted into applause as the guest gazed at the painting in wonder.
Mint
05-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Mint
Krishen Khanna at 100: An extraordinary journey of storytelling through art
An epitome of a true friend Though Karan Khanna remembers snatches of the time spent in Chennai, his earliest memories are of Kanpur where his father, artist Krishen Khanna, was transferred in the years between 1959 and 1961. The family lived there in a big bungalow with a lawn when his father was working in Grindlays Bank. 'He would go to work and come home to paint," says Karan. It is Delhi, though, that he remembers most fondly when his parents, siblings, aunt and cousins lived together. This was also the time when Khanna shifted to painting full-time. Later, he accepted a monthly contract of ₹500 to paint for Kumar Art Gallery, which also exhibited his works later. 'I must've been seven or eight years old when I became his studio assistant. My job was to clean the brushes and the colour palette," remembers Karan. The house in Mathura Road had a barsati, which doubled up as Khanna's studio. Karan remembers his home always being an open house for visitors and Khanna's friends-artists such as V.S. Gaitonde, Tyeb Mehta, M.F. Husain, Ram Kumar, and more. 'The Progressive artists were uncles to us, and later our family grew with everyone's children coming together to celebrate festivals, events, and occasions," remembers Karan. The artists would often have constructive arguments on art, and would meet the next day as if nothing had happened. 'They could have their own points of view but eventually the bond between all of them was really strong, and that allowed friendships to remain intact," he adds. One of the biggest learnings for Karan has been that of discipline and diligence. Today, even though Khanna doesn't paint regularly, he continues to draw daily. The artist also stands as an epitome of a true friend—be it helping Gaitonde when the artist met with an accident or by hosting Kumar's exhibition at home and buying some of his artworks as well. In their home in Gurugram, paintings of fellow Progressives such Husain, Mehta, and S.H. Raza hold pride of place. 'He looks at his friends' works everyday, telling us often that he misses them a lot," says Karan. While the Khanna household is brimming with family members who are in town to celebrate 100 years of the artist, the centenarian recently confessed to his son, 'Kisko bulaoon, ab koi friend hai hee nahi (whom should I call, none of my friends are around)." That being said, the artist remains happy and cheerful, with that radiant smile always on his face. 'It's good karma that I'm their son and that my parents are still with us, happy and healthy," says Karan. Simply sophisticated Curator and art writer Uma Nair's association with the Khanna family goes back to the time when Renuka—her classmate and friend Karan's mother—would encourage her to write after reading her school essays. Many years later, Nair would curate group shows featuring Krishen Khanna's sculptures and paintings, and would write about him in several publications. 'Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication and that completely defines Krishen Khanna. He's a man of integrity, and creates works of art that speak of the truth," she says. Khanna's works are as relevant as ever for highlighting people on the margins. The much feted Bandwalla series of the early 1980s is a fitting example of Khanna's empathetic gaze. In the late 1970s, the artist encountered a baraat, or a wedding procession, where he noticed the frayed scarlet red garments of these musicians with their large brass instruments, playing popular film tunes while looking frail and tired. It was then that he decided to capture 'this common man" on his canvas. In a catalogue that she wrote for theThe Indian Council for Cultural Relations, titled 'Krishen Khanna: Paintings and Drawings, A Human Odyssey, 70 Years', the artist is quoted as: 'There is something sad… about them [bandwallas]. Like refugees, they too came to this side of the border, and like me they too didn't know what to do in life… they had the skill… the irony is that no one wants them otherwise. So, I have some affinity for them." In a show of sculptures, 'Alchemies of Form', which she had curated earlier this year in Bikaner House, four of the artist's sculptures, inspired by his bandwalla series were displayed. 'His art leaves us with the feeling that the most important thing in life is grace," explains Nair. 'He compels us to think." Take for instance, his works such as 1947 about the Partition or News of Gandhiji's Death (1950), Truckwallas (1970s), and Game (1970s). She finds 1947 a particularly poignant work. 'Unlike his big canvases, this is a relatively smaller work but is a milestone of sorts. It makes us think of our history and the power of human emotions," adds Nair. A chronicler of history Having known Khanna for over 25 years, Dinesh Vazirani, CEO and co-founder, Saffronart, hails him not just as a timeless artist but also a wonderful mentor. 'When we were starting Saffronart, selling art online was unheard of. I was nervous but he said, 'You're making a change and that takes a different conviction and different courage. It'll be tough but don't give up,' and that stuck with me," he adds. The team is planning a private show of his works at the ITC Maurya, Delhi, where his iconic mural, The Great Procession, is part of the lobby. Vazirani finds a whimsical side to some of Khanna's art—he documents history with a twist of humour, emotion and sensitivity. The artist's work is relatable due to the lived experiences that he brings to the canvas. Khanna has an innate gentleness and wit that reflects in his art as well. He remembers feeling overwhelmed on meeting the artist for the first time. However, Khanna made him feel comfortable instantly. He continues to be easy to talk to, and full of laughter and stories. In the auction world, Khanna is hailed as a blue chip artist, simply for his storytelling ability. The last man standing in the Progressives group, he remains timeless as ever. 'He's a chronicler of history, and that's why the value of his works appreciates in auctions," says Vazirani. 'His work will bring out a range of emotions in you." While it's tough to talk about his favourites, Vazirani is fascinated with The Last Bite, Khanna's take on the iconic The Last Supper in which he's painted all his 'band of brothers", with Husain at the head of the table personifying Christ. Telling the stories of people on the margins Ashish Anand,CEO & MD, DAG, continues to be intrigued by Khanna's charm even after all these years. 'Krishen Khanna is as wonderful in his personal interactions as he is in his artistic practice—his warmth is contagious," says Anand. DAG, in its previous publications and catalogues, has featured essays especially written by the artist about the Progressive Artists' Group, his early days, the fight for freedom of artistic expression, and more. The artist's biggest contribution, perhaps, lies in giving an agency to anonymous people on the streets and their respective occupations. 'His representation has made them visible in public life, making Krishen a true chronicler of the poor, the downtrodden and the marginalised. Yet, they exude a sense of joie-de-vivre, or the joy of life, reflecting his own sunny persona," says Anand. He continues to be amazed at Khanna's razor sharp memory, and astounding ability to remember the minutest of details from events that happened back in time. 'He has always been willing to be interviewed for our projects and, in fact, twice contributed his writings for our exhibitions—Continuum and Mumbai Modern—both based on the Progressives, of which he remains, at 100 years of age, the lone star." An expert at colour Enter the ITC Maurya in Delhi and you can't miss the imposing ceiling that has one of India's biggest murals on display. Titled, The Great Procession, it is an ode to the heritage of India, recreating the panelled dome of a Chaitya or a Buddhist hall of worship. Khanna was commissioned to work on it in the late 1970s, with the project taking four years to complete. 'Painted onto the curved surface of the lobby dome, it brings together elements from the rich Mauryan past," says Amaan Kidwai, area manager, luxury hotels (North) and general manager, ITC. Back in the day when the mural was in the works, it wasn't unusual to see Khanna in the hotel for long stretches of time, absorbed in thought. Each of the works were assembled at his studio in Garhi, New Delhi, finally put together at the hotel. You can't help but feel a sense of awe in the way the artist has used colour and perspective in his composition. This remains, perhaps, one of the biggest artworks at any Indian hotel. According to Kidwai, the artist was instrumental in engaging several distinguished artists to contribute to the Mauryan-inspired theme of ITC Maurya. This, once again, is a pointer to how Khanna always supported his friends—as the first Rockefeller Fellow artist in the 1960s, he encouraged many other artists for the fellowship. 'The celebration of his 100th birthday, with this timeless piece of art in view, is an honour for us," adds Kidwai. Abhilasha Ojha is an independent art and culture writer.
Indian Express
05-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Artist Krishen Khanna turns 100: ‘Creating art is like breathing, I live it daily'
The cacophony and bustle of Gurugram feel distant in the quiet of modernist Krishen Khanna's home in the corporate sprawl. At 100, he still paints regularly. 'I have just started painting now. My thoughts are much more lucid and I am working in ways that I haven't before,' he says. Immersed in a set of monochrome drawings on canvas at present, he has also recently completed a large painting that reflects his enduring fondness for music. Rendered in sombre shades, it depicts a dancer in red moving to the rhythms of a tabla and a sarangi. 'It went through many iterations,' says Khanna, 'Creating art is like breathing, I live it daily.' Much like the calmer life that he now leads, the centennial celebration on July 5 was an intimate affair, with wife Renu, their three children and five grandchildren. 'We've all come together for the occasion,' says his son Karan, also a photo artist. The sole surviving member of the Progressive Artists' Group — founded in 1947 to forge a modern vocabulary for Indian art — Khanna has carried forward its legacy. He recalls fond memories of a changing art world in India but does not hide the loneliness of being the last one standing among his friends. 'He is still painting and thinking about art but he often speaks about losing his friends to time, including those younger to him,' says close friend, poet and critic Ashok Vajpeyi. A keeper of stories, in an interview with The Indian Express he had recalled the evening of 1961, when, after years of balancing a banking job with art, he resigned from Grindlays Bank to lead life as a full-time artist. He reminisced: 'On my last day at work, (MF) Husain, (VS) Gaitonde and Bal Chhabda were waiting outside. The moment I stepped out, Bal took off my tie and said I wouldn't need it anymore. We had tea to celebrate, then dinner at The Coronation Durbar. Raza even threw a party in Paris — they had all been urging me to make the leap.' Largely self-taught, he was only seven when he made his first interpretation of Leonardo da Vinci's iconic The Last Supper, a theme that reappeared throughout his artistic career. He had been introduced to the mural through a print that his father had brought back from Europe. Though his rendering received accolades, art wasn't a career even in distant consideration. Attaining the Rudyard Kipling Scholarship at 13, he travelled to England to study at the Imperial Service College in Windsor, where he excelled both in academics and extracurriculars. Forced to return to Pakistan following the outbreak of World War II, in 1942, after his family relocated to Lahore, he enrolled at Government College to complete his undergraduate studies and also began taking evening classes at the Mayo School of Art, later honing his drawing skills at artist Sheikh Ahmed's Studio One. The more onerous ordeals were yet to come, arriving in the form of the Partition, which brought with it widespread violence and mass displacement. Khanna moved with his family to Shimla. The trauma he witnessed would remain with him forever, periodically surfacing in his art. His 1947 oil, Refugee Train Late 16 HRS, portrays anxious people waiting to cross the border. Through his 2016 diptych Benediction on a Battlefield that depicts the Pandavas paying obeisance to Bhishma before he passed away, he also reflects on the agony of families separated due to the Partition. ******* Happenstance had also played a role in ushering him into the mainstream art world. On a ship, his wife had met an acquaintance who knew artist SB Palsikar. She wrote to him, requesting him to see Khanna's work. Impressed by his calibre, Palsikar returned from his Mumbai studio with a small canvas depicting people reading the newspaper after Mahatma Gandhi's assassination. Titled News of Gandhiji's Death, the 1948 work was featured at Bombay Art Society's Golden Jubilee Exhibition in 1949, where apart from the audience, it also attracted the attention of Husain, who made his way to Khanna's home. The long chat between the two marked the beginning of a lifelong friendship and also Khanna's eventual induction into the PAG that had been founded by Souza, Raza, Husain, KH Ara, HA Gade and SK Bakre. It also led to Khanna's first Husain, which was sent to him by the artist after he misplaced a copy of Clive Bell's Art that he had borrowed from Khanna. It later occupied a wall at Khanna's residence alongside works of other artist friends. 'We discussed anything and everything… I was very fortunate that I had such wonderful people who also had wonderful insights into art,' said Khanna in a 2015 interview. Sharing deep camaraderie, they supported each in all ways possible. Khanna, for instance, arranged accommodation for several artists, including Tyeb Mehta, when they were moving to Delhi. He even persuaded Kumar Gallery to give Mehta the same monthly stipend of Rs 500 that he received in the early '60s. Vajpeyi recalls how Khanna was the perennial peacemaker and also credits him for being the anchor who ensured that they were in correspondence through letters even when each of them was navigating different continents. Khanna himself widely exhibited internationally through the '50s and '60s, including London, Tokyo, New York and Brazil. As the first recipient of the prestigious John D Rockefeller III Fund fellowship, in 1962 he travelled to New York, passing through countries like Singapore, Indonesia and Japan, which led to engagements with the East Asian art of Sumi-e in his work. During this period, the primarily figurative artist also briefly explored abstracts. 'I intermittently do several things. I had some shows of abstract art and then moved on. It's a chance method of seeing,' he had said. The experiments extended beyond the canvas and included forays into photography in the late '60s and '70s, when he created composite images through layered projections. The '80s, meanwhile, saw him produce one of India's most monumental public murals — adorning the ceiling at ITC Maurya's lobby in Delhi, The Great Procession is a visual epic that dwells on myriad encounters through multiple protagonists and scenes. A voracious reader, while his references span a spectrum — including Indian and Christian mythology, music, poetry and literature — the constant thread in his engagements has remained his sensitivity to the human condition and the marginalised. If in the '60s, truck drivers whom he would see from his Nizamuddin home at night became his protagonists, he later painted a series depicting scenes at dhabas as an extension of home for those on the road. His most enduring theme, though, has been the silent struggles of the bandwallas. Once part of the British regimental marches, Khanna mulls how they were later compelled to belt songs at weddings and now strive for sustenance. 'Among the very few artists of that period who came from a position of privilege, he brought learning, education and erudition to his art practice, which in turn gained him a certain patronage. But despite that, an interesting anomaly is how his subjects always remained the marginalised… With the sense of empathy and dignity that he represented them, most viewers tend to celebrate their presence in his compositions. Only a few are really able to discern that he is reflecting on the life of the less advantaged, while asserting a need for greater inclusivity. How beautifully he does this is what I think we will remember him for,' says art critic and curator Kishore Singh. Vajpeyi notes how there are still dimensions of Khanna's art that deserve greater recognition. 'While his figurative and neo-narrative style have been widely discussed, somehow his command as a colourist has not received its due acclaim,' he says. Khanna, meanwhile, remains far from complacent — his quest to explore new artistic frontiers continues. Once a familiar presence at art soirees in the Capital, his family now helps him stay connected to the art world, especially works of some of the younger artists. Reflecting on his remarkable journey with characteristic humility, Khanna simply says, 'It has been a wonderful life.'
Indian Express
05-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
From Partition to today, Krishen Khanna's work tells the story of a changing nation
When an artist turns 100, it marks a turn in history, for he has been witness to all the page-turning episodes of his country and brought them to life on his canvases. For the well-known artist Krishen Khanna, who turns 100 today, the most haunting memories are of Partition. Khanna was working at a printing press in Lahore when the rumblings of Partition, and of Independence, began. He depicts this vividly in his work, Refugee Train Late 16 hrs (1947), where a group of men and women can be seen tightly packed together while waiting for the train that can take them across the border. A couple can be seen embracing each other fervently, for they do not know if they will meet again. The artist's memories of Partition are as if it has just happened: 'It was during the crucial months…we trooped out in two cars and came straight to Shimla where the education department [his father was deputy director of education with the government] was then going to be founded. All the records had to be garnered and brought. The ones that didn't come, they had to be made up again through memory… But anyway, I was there, and I was looking out for a job. I couldn't go back…The evenings in Lahore would be penetrated by howling cries, as area after area would be set afire and it still haunts me and holds me immobile.' Khanna's memories of Lahore remain vivid, even today. About a work like Maclagan Road (1990), for instance, he states, 'I spent several years of my childhood on Maclagan Road which was like a microcosm of Lahore. On this modest road lived professors and teachers of considerable distinction as well as my father who taught at the Government College. There was Dr Gurbax Rai, a homeopath who healed even the passerby. He actively participated in the freedom struggle and went to jail several times. During those difficult days, his wife would sell fruit preserves. As a refugee in Delhi he continued to live with the same dignity and simplicity. It was fantastic how this small stretch of road had people of every faith and profession, and belonging to different strata of society, all living in peace and amity.' The artist's family shifted to India, and to earn a living, Khanna arrived in Bombay in 1948 where he joined Grindlays Bank. It was then that he came across the artists who formed the famed Progressive Artists' Group and were at the forefront of modernism. He met like-minded artists like M F Husain and S H Raza, and then he exhibited a painting which they all liked at the Bombay Art Society. The painting was called News of Gandhiji's Death (1948) and featured people reading newspapers under a light. The artist says, 'I was in Delhi when Gandhi ji was assassinated and I was going to Connaught Place and [there were] all these little islands with lights and people were gathered under the lights reading newspapers. That left an image in my mind. So I worked on that and did this painting.' Artists in the Progressive Group met frequently, had fervent discussions late into the night and supported and analysed each other's works. There came a time when Khanna wanted to leave his banking job and paint full time. Supported by his wife, he was to give it up entirely in 1961. There was no looking back after that. His vast artistic resources drove him to make works which threw the spotlight on the marginalised and the ignored during the heady early years of Independence. In paintings like Rear View (1991), the plight of migrant workers huddled in trucks — like bundles of objects and painted in monotones — drew attention to their unchanging situation despite Independence. Khanna's depiction of the bandwallas over the years expressed contradictions in the social situation in a vivid manner. The bandwallas in their bright but ill-fitting costumes and their straggly appearance bring light to the lives of others while remaining in a situation of constant deprivation themselves. Over the years, Khanna's bandwallas sensuously depicted the bodily stances and postures of those on the fringes of society, as well as their immense and heroic struggle to overcome their situation. The retelling of the lives of many came together in his murals, the most well-known of which is the magnificent work, The Great Procession, made in the dome at the ITC Maurya, New Delhi in the 1970s. Presented with sardonic wit, the mural offers glimpses of India with all its contradictions and ironies: A woman scratches her ear in a temple, amid devotees; a man picks pockets outside a mosque; a tiger hides in a mountain cave to pounce on grazing goats; the merry bandwallas play in a corner while barbers and street performers ply their trade. There are humorous quotations as well, and author Khushwant Singh serves tea in a dhaba where the customers include Mulk Raj Anand and the artist himself. These vignettes of a life lived to its fullest are revealed like a procession in this mural of epic proportions. Khanna's moving work, The Last Bite (2005), speaks for itself. It stands out for its reflection of the camaraderie and debates he shared with other artists, as well as the times that they foresaw. In this painting, Husain is central as a prominent member of the Progressive Artists' Group. He is flanked on the left by Tyeb Mehta, F N Souza and Bhanu Athaiya — the only woman member, who later became important as the costume designer for Richard Attenborough's Gandhi (1982). The painting has other members of the artist fraternity, like Akbar Padamsee who seems to be addressing Bhupen Khakhar, who in turn appears to be looking out of the frame as if engaging with the common man. On Khanna's right is the famed V S Gaitonde addressing Jeram Patel, as the painter Jogen Chowdhury looks out of the frame. Manjit Bawa, Raza and J Swaminathan complete the group. As the last man standing, Khanna feels bereft of his friends and contemporaries, but his work and life provide sustenance, not just to himself, but to what he cherishes the most: The ordinary man on the street. The writer is an art historian and independent curator based in New Delhi
