Osian's Auction Catalogue Creative India Series 1 Bengal | December 2011

Chittaprosad Bhattacharya Born: 21 June 1915, Naihati, West Bengal Died: 13 November 1978, Calcutta, West Bengal Education 1932-36 Chittagong Government College, Chittagong, present-day Bangladesh Select Teaching and Infrastructure-building Activities 1934-39 Participated in the National Movement by making posters, drawings and cartoons 1940-48 Member of the Communist Party of India Published ‘Hungry Bengal’, a pamphlet documenting his experiences of the Bengal famine of 1943, all copies of which were burned by the British Raj before they could leave the press. A few were salvaged. His drawings of the Bengal Famine were published in Communist party journals ‘People’s War’ and ‘Janayudha’ 1946 Worked for the Left Press, Mumbai 1949 Responded to the call of the World Peace Movement by contributing his art to the cause of World Peace 1950 Founded his own puppet-theatre, Khela Ghar , in collaboration with traditional Indian puppeteers 1952 Made a series of linocuts titled ‘Angels without Fairy Tales’ depicting Indian children as sufferers of poverty, disease and oppression 1960s Learnt the technique of Czech amateur puppetry from Frantisek Salaba, an amateur Czech puppeteer living in Bombay 1969 The Danish UNICEF Committee published the collection of his lino-cuts ‘Angels Without Fairy Tales’ dedicated to the International Conference in Defence of Children Donated his series of paintings, titled ‘Neglected Childhood’ , to the Danish UNICEF Committee Early 1970s Was involved in writing stories from the Ramayana and Mahabharata for children, in verse form with illustrations done by himself Illustrated Indian Fables and Fairy Tales and With Puppets to Calcutta by the Czech writer Norbert Fryd Select Awards and Honours 1978 Chittaprosad Art Archive, an institute of research on Chittaprosad’s life and works established in Calcutta 1988 ‘To Remember Chittaprosad on His Tenth Death Anniversary Day’, a tribute published by Chalasani Prasada Rao, Editor, Eenadu, Hyderabad Select Solo Exhibitions 1956 First major exhibition, Prague, Czechoslovakia Exhibitions in Denmark, Holland, Germany and USA 1964 Shilpayan, Calcutta 1979 Exhibition of Graphic Art, organised by Prague National Gallery, Czechoslovak Society for Foreign Relations and Mladá Fronta Publishers (Prague), Fronta Gallery, Prague, Czechoslovakia 1980 1980 Exhibition at Calcutta Information Centre, organised by Chittaprosad Art Archive, Chittabharati, Calcutta and The Department of Information and Cultural Affairs, Govt. of West Bengal (24-28 November) 1981 Chittaprosad - A Retrospective, works acquired by Prague’s National Gallery since 1956, Prague, Czechoslovakia 1992 Birthday celebration Chittaprosad, The Centre Art Gallery and Chitrakoot Art Gallery, Calcutta (21 June - 9 July) 1992 Exhibition of Selected Cartoons and Drawings to mark the 14th Death Anniversary of the Artist, Alliance Française, Calcutta 1992 An Exhibition of Chittaprosad - To Commemorate his 77th Birthday, The Center Art Gallery and Chitrakoot Art Gallery, Calcutta (21 June-9 July) 1994 Chittaprosad, Nandan, Kala Bhavan, Santiniketan 1995 Exhibition of Drawings, Linocuts & Woodcuts, organised by Alliance Francaise-Delhi at Gallery Romain Rolland, New Delhi (7-20 March)