Rekha Chakraborty
| Rekha Chakraborty | |
|---|---|
 Rekha Chakraborty.jpg Rekha Chakraborty at her desk at Rekha Chitram, Salt Lake, Kolkata | |
| Born | 25 April 1933 Bikrampur, Dhaka, Bengal Presidency, British India (present-day Bangladesh) |
| 💀Died | 24 July 2006 (aged 73) Salt Lake, Kolkata, West Bengal, India24 July 2006 (aged 73) |
| 🏳️ Nationality | Indian |
| 🎓 Alma mater | Lady Brabourne College, Kolkata (B.A.) |
| 💼 Occupation | |
| Known for | Embroidery as fine art; "Thread on Canvas" technique |
| Notable work | Portrait of V.I. Lenin (Lenin Museum, Moscow) Portrait of Georgi Dimitrov (Dimitrov Museum, Sofia) Portrait of Rabindranath Tagore (Tagore Centre, Indian High Commission, London) |
| Movement | Social Realism; Figurative Portraiture |
| 🏅 Awards | Soviet Land Nehru Award |
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Rekha Chakraborty (Bengali: রেখা চক্রবর্তী; 25 April 1933 – 24 July 2006) was an Indian embroidery artist based in Kolkata who founded Rekha Chitram, an art gallery and cultural institution in Salt Lake.[1][2] She worked in a technique she called "Thread on Canvas," using cloth as canvas, needles as brushes, and coloured threads in place of pigment to create portraits, landscapes and figurative compositions.[2]
Chakraborty established Rekha Chitram in 1980, initially operating from the first floor of CA Market in Salt Lake before relocating to its present location at CK Block in 1991.[2] The institution has held annual art exhibitions since its first year of operation.[2] It currently functions as a gallery, art school and cultural centre offering courses in embroidery, fashion design, painting, photography, classical and folk dance, and music.[1]
Chakraborty received the Soviet Land Nehru Award from the Soviet Embassy in India for her embroidered portrait of Vladimir Lenin, which is held by the Lenin Museum, Moscow.[3] Her embroidered portraits are held in collections including the Dimitrov Museum in Sofia, the Tagore Centre at the Indian High Commission in London, the Gandhi Memorial in Berlin, and the Goethe Museum in Germany.[3]
Early life and education
Rekha Chakraborty was born on 25 April 1933 in Bikrampur, Dhaka, in the Bengal Presidency of British India (present-day Bangladesh).[3] Her family migrated to Calcutta (now Kolkata) before the Partition of Bengal in 1947.[3]
She completed her undergraduate degree at Lady Brabourne College, Kolkata, affiliated to the University of Calcutta.[3] She subsequently joined the Usha Company in Kolkata.[3]
Career
Chakraborty began teaching embroidery and painting from a rented space at C.A. Market, Salt Lake, before formally establishing Rekha Chitram in 1980.[2] The institution moved to its present location at CK 47, Sector II, Salt Lake, in 1991, and was inaugurated on 22 February 1991 by Pandit Ravi Shankar.[2]
Chakraborty described "Thread on Canvas" as a technique in which colour choices must be determined at the outset, since once a thread is applied it cannot be modified.[3] Her son and successor at Rekha Chitram, Arun Chakraborty, has described the medium as "a traditional folk craft that has transformed into fine art," with the technique passed down through generations within the family.[2]
Subjects of her portraits include Kishore Kumar, Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay, Sukumar Ray, S. D. Burman, Nirad C. Chaudhuri, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Michael Jackson, Indira Gandhi, Mother Teresa, Lady Diana, Amartya Sen, and Leo Tolstoy.[1] The earliest dated work in the gallery's collection is a painting of a young tribal woman from 1947.[1]
Recognition
Soviet Land Nehru Award
The Soviet Land Nehru Award was instituted in 1965, named after the Soviet Land magazine and Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, and presented by the Soviet Embassy in India to recognise contributions to Indo-Soviet cultural relations. Chakraborty received the award from Mr. Vezirov, Consulate General of the Soviet Union, at Gorky Sadan, Kolkata, in recognition of her embroidered portrait of V.I. Lenin held by the Lenin Museum, Moscow.[4]
Other recognition
In 1979, President Neelam Sanjiva Reddy invited Chakraborty to Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi, in recognition of her work in embroidery.[5] Filmmaker Satyajit Ray also issued a personal written commendation to the institution.[5]
Visitors and collectors
The Rekha Chitram archive records visits and presentations involving Prime Ministers Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and I. K. Gujral; Presidents Pranab Mukherjee and Neelam Sanjiva Reddy; Nobel Laureates Mother Teresa and Amartya Sen; Pandit Ravi Shankar; Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat; Chief Minister Jyoti Basu; and Governors Viren J. Shah and Gopal Krishna Gandhi.[5]
Other visitors and recipients of works recorded in the archive include filmmaker Gulzar, actors Jaya Bachchan, Soumitra Chatterjee and Ashok Kumar, dancer Amala Shankar, swimmer Arati Saha, poets Sankha Ghosh and Nirendranath Chakraborty, author Taslima Nasrin, physicist Mani L. Bhaumik, former police officer Kiran Bedi, and former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit.[5]
The 2017 annual exhibition at Rekha Chitram was attended by poets Sankha Ghosh and Alokranjan Dasgupta and artist Rabin Mondal, with Dasgupta describing the institution's role in supporting independent artistic practice.[2]
-
Yasser Arafat with Rekha Chakraborty and Arun Kumar Chakraborty. -
Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, Dr Phulrenu Guha, Rekha Chakraborty and Arun Kumar Chakraborty. -
Prime Minister I. K. Gujral at his office in New Delhi. -
Jaya Bachchan at the Mumbai exhibition of Rekha Chitram. -
Ashok Kumar with Rekha Chakraborty in Mumbai. -
Gulzar receiving an embroidered portrait from Arun Kumar Chakraborty. -
President Pranab Mukherjee with Arun Kumar Chakraborty at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata. -
Arun Kumar Chakraborty presenting an embroidered portrait to Amartya Sen. -
Jyoti Basu with Rekha Chakraborty. -
Governor Gopal Krishna Gandhi at a Rekha Chitram exhibition. -
Rekha Chakraborty presenting an embroidered portrait of Mother Teresa to Mother Teresa at Loreto House, Kolkata. -
Amala Shankar and swimmer Arati Saha at Rekha Chitram. -
Sheila Dikshit at India International Centre, New Delhi. -
Taslima Nasrin at Rekha Chitram, Kolkata. -
Paritosh Sen at a Rekha Chitram exhibition. -
Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar in a meeting with Arun Kumar Chakraborty.
Works in collections
Chakraborty's embroidered works entered the permanent collections of institutions across multiple countries.[3][1]
| Country | Institution | City | Work |
|---|---|---|---|
| Russia | Lenin Museum | Moscow | Portrait of V.I. Lenin |
| Bulgaria | Dimitrov Museum | Sofia | Portrait of Georgi Dimitrov |
| United Kingdom | Tagore Centre, Indian High Commission | London | Portrait of Rabindranath Tagore |
| Germany | Gandhi Memorial | Berlin | Portrait of Mahatma Gandhi |
| Germany | Goethe Museum | Germany | Portrait of Goethe |
| Cuba | Havana Museum | Havana | Portrait of Rabindranath Tagore |
| India | Kala Bhavan, Visva-Bharati University | Santiniketan | Portrait of Abanindranath Tagore |
| India | India International Centre | New Delhi | Prometheus |
| India | Rekha Chitram Collection | Salt Lake, Kolkata | Sunrise-I (1996) |
Death
Chakraborty died on 24 July 2006 at Rekha Chitram, Salt Lake, Kolkata, at the age of 73, following a period of illness.[3]
Rekha Chitram
Rekha Chitram is described in The Telegraph as a Salt Lake-based art school where students display their work at an annual exhibition that has been held since the institution's founding.[2] WhatsHot Kolkata describes it as "an art gallery and cultural institution" exhibiting embroidered paintings alongside courses in machine, hand and batik embroidery, fashion design, painting, photography, Bharatanatyam, Kathak, and music.[1]
The institution is currently led by Arun Kumar Chakraborty, who joined his mother in developing the technique and continues as principal.[2][1] Under his direction, Rekha Chitram has produced documentary films on figures including K. G. Subramanyan, Rabin Mondal, Sunil Das, and Amlan Datta.[5]
Notable works
Chakraborty's documented works include Sunrise-I (1996), a 30×20 cm landscape in thread on canvas held in the Rekha Chitram collection; an embroidered portrait of V.I. Lenin at the Lenin Museum, Moscow; a portrait of Abanindranath Tagore at Kala Bhavan, Santiniketan; and Prometheus, held at the India International Centre, New Delhi.[3][1]
Exhibitions
Rekha Chitram has held annual exhibitions since its founding in 1980.[2][3]
| Year | Venue | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Gorky Sadan | Kolkata |
| 1983 | Birla Academy of Art and Culture | Kolkata |
| 1984, 1987, 1998 | Academy of Fine Arts | Kolkata |
| 1985–1986 | Gorky Sadan | Kolkata |
| 1988 | Salt Lake Stadium | Kolkata |
| 1989–1990 | Gallery C.B. 56 | Kolkata |
| 1991–2018 | Rekha Chitram Art Gallery | Salt Lake, Kolkata |
| 1991 | Humboldt University | Berlin, Germany |
| 1993 | Nandan Art Gallery | Santiniketan |
| 1996 | Bangasanskriti Mela | Liverpool, United Kingdom |
| 1996 | Swanlea School and Whitechapel Library | London, United Kingdom |
| 1999 | Gorky Sadan | Kolkata |
| 2000 | India International Centre | New Delhi |
| 2019–2025 | Asiatic Society, Rajendra Lala Mitra Bhavan | Salt Lake, Kolkata |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Chatterjee, Jayeeta (2 April 2019). "This Art Gallery In Salt Lake Is Also A Cultural Institution". WhatsHot Kolkata. Times Internet. Retrieved 3 May 2026.
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 Kanjilal, Bharati (7 April 2017). "Annual brush with canvas & colour". The Telegraph. Kolkata: ABP Group. Retrieved 3 May 2026.
- ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 "About Us". Art Paradize. Archived from the original on 2025-03-20. Retrieved 1 May 2026. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Photograph caption: "Sm. Rekha Chakraborty receiving the Soviet Land Award from Mr. Vezirov, Consulate General Calcutta at Gorky Sadan." Physical photograph, Rekha Chitram archive, Kolkata.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Arun Kumar Chakraborty, ed. Discovery of the Dormant Arun. Rekha Chitram, Kolkata, 1980. Physical institutional document held at Rekha Chitram, Salt Lake, Kolkata.
External links
- Art Paradize: Rekha Chakraborty biography
- The Telegraph: Annual brush with canvas & colour (2017)
- WhatsHot Kolkata: This Art Gallery In Salt Lake Is Also A Cultural Institution (2019)
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