Morphology of Water: A Project by Santanu Debnath

Overview 

Morphology of Water: A Project by Santanu Debnath marks the first on-site solo exhibition by the artist at Emami Art. Deeply rooted in the everyday life of his native village, Debnath’s practice draws from the ordinary scenes and lived realities of the local people. This body of work centers around the natural waterbodies—ponds and reservoirs—that once played a vital role in structuring communal life, but are now in decline. After receiving formal art education in Kolkata, Debnath returned to his village, choosing not to depict its idyllic landscapes, but to focus instead on the overlooked elements that sustained its socio-ecological fabric. 

With meticulous, hyper-realistic detail and sensitive observation, Debnath documents the slow violence of ecological degradation and the steady erosion of natural resources. While nature has long been a subject in art, in Debnath’s hands it becomes a critical terrain—no longer romanticized but rendered with urgency and clarity. His work reflects a deep concern for the fragility of our environment, inviting viewers to reconsider the ecological consequences of human neglect. 

The still, abandoned waterbodies in Debnath’s images mark not only environmental degradation but also a larger shift in the rhythms of village life. His works trace how these changes affect both nature and society over time. Executed across canvas, paper, and wood, Debnath’s visual language evokes a sense of lost purity—imbued with both beauty and a quiet, persistent anguish for what is disappearing. 

About the Artist 

Santanu Debnath, born in 1995 in Betpukur, a village in West Bengal, completed his BFA and MFA in Painting from the Rabindra Bharati University and Government College of Art and Craft, Kolkata, respectively. 

He was featured on an online solo show, The Simple Life at Emami Art, Kolkata (2020) and After Cities Fall, Nippon Gallery, Mumbai (2020). He has participated in several group shows including Re: Figuring, Emami Art, Kolkata (2025); India Art Fair 2025, New Delhi; There Are Tides in the Body, Emami Art, Kolkata (2024); All That is Hidden: Mapping Departures in Landscape, Terrains and Geographies, Emami Art, Kolkata (2024); 100 Yuva Sumbhava, Raza Foundation, Delhi, 2022; IMAGINARIUM, Emami Art, Kolkata (2021); GCAC Annual Exhibition (2019-21); KCC Art Fair 2019; West Bengal State Academy, Kolkata (2018-19); ICAD Annual Exhibition, Kolkata, (2015-18); Institute de Chandannagar, Hooghly (2017); among others.  

He won the Gita Das Award at the GCAC Annual Exhibition in 2019 and a Certificate of Merit at the West Bengal State Academy Annual Exhibition 2018-19. He received the Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation Grant 2024 and the prestigious Shilpacharya Zainul Abedin Scholarship 2020-21. Debnath was an artist-in-residence at the three-month Open Studio Monsoon Residency 2024 at Space Studio, Vadodara. 

Santanu Debnath lives and works in Betpukur, West Bengal.