Kavita Nayar

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Kavita Nayar is an accomplished artist with a bachelor’s degree from Kala Bhawan Shantiniketan and a master’s degree from the College of Art, New Delhi. Her artistic journey has been adorned with prestigious accolades, including the French Government scholarship and the Charles Wallace India Trust Fellowship, which led her to work in Cite internationale Des Arts and as a visiting artist at Oxford University, England.

Nayar’s remarkable career is highlighted by solo exhibitions at renowned venues such as Bose Pacia Modern in New York, Oxford University in England, and various private galleries across Delhi, Kolkata, and Mumbai. Her works find a distinguished place in collections at the Prime Minister’s House in India, the Ministry of Civil Aviation in New Delhi, the National Gallery of Modern Art in New Delhi, Otterbein University in Ohio, and in notable academies, corporate establishments, and private residences in India and abroad.

Currently, Nayar dedicates her time to freelancing and shares her expertise as a visiting professor at the College of Art, New Delhi. Additionally, she serves as a Trustee of the Kala Sakshi Memorial Trust, an NGO committed to scholarships and mentoring programs, providing a platform for young and deserving art students to flourish in their creative pursuits.

‘’The word Fanous is a term that originated from Greek phanos. It means light or lantern. Historically used in its meaning of ‘the light of the world’ and is a symbol of hope, as in light in the darkness. I have worked on the concept of Light and Form of the fanous. The dim but strong light emanating from the slender delicate glass chimney creates a mysterious chiaroscuro.

Going down memory lane, due to frequent load shedding, this lamp had become an integral part of our growing up days in Kolkata and Shantiniketan. Almost every evening, studies had to be accomplished in this lamp light. The most irritating part was the frequent intermittent cleaning of the soot that would get collected around the glass chimney. To console us, mother would recite a Sanskrit shloka from the Upanishad- Asato Ma Sadgamaya…. Tamaso ma Jyotirgamaya….

Lead me from the unreal to the real …lead me from darkness to light…lead the life toward knowledge from ignorance… Today when I look back, I realise all the aspirations of the human heart have been included in these lines.’’ Kavita Nayar