D. P. Roy Choudhury
Devi Prasad Roy Choudhury entered the world on the 15th of June 1899 at Tejhat in Rangpur. This region belonged to undivided Bengal within British India before becoming part of Bangladesh. He did not attend a formal school but received his academic studies from home. His first painting lessons came under Abanindranath Tagore, a renowned Bengali painter. Later he learned life-drawing and portraiture in western style from an Italian painter named Boeiss. Sculpture training followed with Hiranmoy Roy Choudhury who taught him to build figures rather than carve them.
Roy Choudhury joined the Madras School of Art in 1929 as a superintendent. He became one of the first Indians to head a government educational institution run by the British. The post required him to accept private assignments alongside his official duties. During thirty years at the school he inspired several artists from South India. Students had produced only conventional work until his arrival. He changed the existing image of the school as merely an industrial arts centre. The British Government honoured him as an MBE in 1937 for his service.
Early works displayed flowing lines in wash technique with flat tones typical of Tagore's style. Subjects mostly relied on mythological themes during this initial phase. Exposure to western art techniques led him to create artworks in the western academic style. In later life he drew towards the common man instead of elite subjects. He interacted with people of the poorer class and began drawing from life rather than models. His other works included animal studies derived from hunting expeditions. Critics in the 1930s regarded him as one of the finest portrait painters globally using oil medium.
His specialization lay in casting sculpture rather than carving it directly. French sculptor Auguste Rodin reportedly influenced his early development. Busts of Sir J. C. Bose, Percy Brown and Mrs. Brown appeared during his Kolkata days. While in Chennai high professional standards brought numerous private commissions including portraits of British nobility. Notable sitters included Chief Justice C. V. Kumaraswami Sastri and Governor Lord Erskine. Portraits created from photographs featured Mahatma Gandhi and Motilal Nehru considered monumental works. One of his first multiple-figure reliefs depicted the Travancore Temple Entry Proclamation completed in the 1930s.
The Government of India awarded him Padma Bhushan in 1958 as third highest civilian honour. He received Lalit Kala Akademi Fellowship in 1962. Six years later Rabindra Bharati University honoured him with D.Litt. degree in 1968. When Lalit Kala Akademi founded in 1954 he became its founder chairman. He served as president of UNESCO Art Seminar conducted in Tokyo during 1955. Leadership roles included Nikhil Bharat Bangiya Sahitya Sammilani of 1956 organized in Chennai. His works now display at Government Museum Chennai and National Gallery Modern Art New Delhi among other institutions.
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Common questions
When and where was D. P. Roy Choudhury born?
Devi Prasad Roy Choudhury entered the world on the 15th of June 1899 at Tejhat in Rangpur.
Who taught D. P. Roy Choudhury sculpture techniques?
Hiranmoy Roy Choudhury provided his sculpture training by teaching him to build figures rather than carve them directly.
What major award did the Government of India give D. P. Roy Choudhury in 1958?
The Government of India awarded him Padma Bhushan in 1958 as third highest civilian honour.
Which sculpture did D. P. Roy Choudhury unveil in 1954 at Marina Beach?
The Triumph of Labour sculpture was unveiled in 1954 at Marina Beach near where Singaravelu organized Labour Day celebrations.
Why is the Martyrs Memorial significant in D. P. Roy Choudhury's body of work?
It depicts seven young men who sacrificed lives to hoist the national flag on the building and stands outside Patna Secretariat as symbolic representation of sacrifice for independence.