Partha Pratim Deb is a Kolkata-based artist known for his experimental works ranging from painting and sketches to three-dimensional assemblages which oscillate between being toy and sculpture.
He pursued formal art education at Kala Bhavana, Visva-Bharati, Santiniketan and then at The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda. His mentors at Kala Bhavana included the master artists Nandalal Bose, Benode Behari Mukherjee, and Ramkinkar Baij, with Gouri Bhanja’a works profoundly impacting his practice. His time at Baroda later exposed him to Western modernism, where he learnt from KG Subramanyan. Deb absorbed the essence of both these pivotal institutions and gradually forged his own highly experimental and unconventional path, diverging from the narrative-figurative and abstract art trends of his time.
Working across mediums, Partha Pratim Deb does not follow an over-arching scheme of thought in his works. They are created spontaneously, showing a rich assortment of colourful forms, marks, and patches characterised by a playful style and unconventional approach. His works blend action and conception, abstraction and figuration, freedom and control. The mediums he is most fond of are ones that are either dry or dry quickly – graphite, acrylic, and ink. In his mixed media installations, he repurposes found objects and materials, transforming them into art objects that unlock new forms and meanings, exploring the latent potential of everyday things.
Alongside Partha Pratim Deb’s art career of over six decades, developed his 33-year-long tenure at Rabindra Bharati University, Kolkata (1972 – 2005) where he was the second full-time faculty member at the institution and was instrumental in shaping its Visual Arts department. He served as the department’s Dean between 1998 and 2003.
Deb’s artistic position within the Indian art historical canon is that of a bridge-builder and innovator, one who integrated the philosophical approach of Santiniketan with the progressive experimentalism of Baroda, finally coming up with his own pedagogical approach. This, much like his artistic practice, emphasises experimentation and the courage to challenge conventional boundaries.
