The Madras Movement
The story of how a distinct style of contemporary art by artists from four southern states of India was born.
By Cholamandal Artists' Village
Museum of Madras Movement
The Madras Movement
Madras (now Chennai) in Southern India is the third colonial port city – the other two being Calcutta and Bombay. The Madras School of Arts & Crafts was started as a private institution in 1850 by Colonel Alexander Hunter with the initial focus of creating art goods. This was later taken over by the colonial administration in 1859 and was subsequently upgraded to the Government College of Arts & Crafts in 1963.
Devi Prasad Roy Choudhury, the renowned modern artist from Bengal took charge as Principal of the School in 1929 and was joined by a few artists from the Bengal movement along with artists from the four southern states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Karnataka.
After Roy Choudhary’s retirement in 1957, KCS Paniker took over as Principal and pioneered the modern path which came to be known as the Madras Movement. This also coincided with the post–independence period when artists were striving to break the shackles of colonialism and establish an identity of their own.
Working as a group under KCS Paniker, the painters and sculptors evolved their work - the painters drew it finer and finer, their drawing turned algebraic, severely notational or calligraphic and well in line with the tradition of indigenous drawing.
A radical movement in sculpture was also initiated. Sculptors too seemed to have been directed by an intuitive feeling for workmanship of traditional sculptural figuration, but terse with contemporary vigor. In sculpture as well, the line seemed to pervade, and volume took a backseat. Also, ‘frontality’ was a key element in the works of most of the sculptors.
Thus, Madras also emerged like Bombay, Calcutta and Delhi as one of the key players in the formation of a new art for India.
Cholamandal Centre for Contemporary Art
In 2009, a representative collection of art works of the Madras Movement was housed in the K.C.S. Paniker Museum of the Madras Movement at the Cholamandal Centre for Contemporary Art in Cholamandal Artists’ Village.
Museum of The Madras Movement (2019) by Cholamandal CentreCholamandal Artists' Village
The Museum of the Madras Movement at the Cholamandal Centre for Contemporary Art in Cholamandal Artists’ Village opened in 2009. It displays a representative collection of the works of prominent artists of the Madras Movement in contemporary Indian art.
Museum of The Madras Movement (2018) by Cholamandal CentreCholamandal Artists' Village
The setting up of the Museum in 2009 at Cholamandal Artists’ Village has been a significant development since 1966 when the Village was established by a group of artists under the leadership of KCS Paniker.
Museum of the Madras Movement (2009)Cholamandal Artists' Village
The 55 artists represented in the Museum were all associated and trained at the Government College of Arts & Crafts, Madras (now Chennai). These include some of the founding members of Cholamandal Artists’ Village
Cholamandal Centre for Contemporary Art (2009)Cholamandal Artists' Village
The Cholamandal Artists’ Village is an idyllic place located on 10 acres of land, about nine km from Adyar, Chennai – along the New Mahabalipuram road. Being India’s largest self-supporting artists’ village and one of the most successful in Asia, this beautiful village is truly a magnum opus of contemporary art.
It has earned reputation world over and is now, one of the major tourist attractions in the coastal city.
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