Prof. Sanat Kar, an eminent figure in Indian art, passed away peacefully on January 9, 2023, with the love of his family and loved ones surrounding him. Born in 1935 in West Bengal, he was an educator and an expert in printmaking. He graduated from the Government College of Art & Craft Kolkata and was later associated with Kala Bhavana Visva Bharati, Santiniketan, as a professor in 1974 and later retired as the principal of Kala Bhavana in the year 1995. He was also the founder member and secretary of the Artists’ Circle Calcutta and Society of Contemporary Art (1960-74).

Not only was he a veteran in printmaking, but he was an expert in using tempera as a medium of expression. As an experimental artist, he also introduced the students to different cheaper mediums for printmaking. An expert in intaglio, his artworks are characterised by fantastic imaginary and incongruous juxtapositions. His ideas, images, and objects portray somewhat fairytales and fables where symbols unify the conceptual diversity of symbols and language and give a totality to his works by juxtaposing the visual with the tangible language. The images reveal that Sanat Kar wanders into a fantasy space, discovering virtuous connections with the symbols and metaphors; some of which strain into conscious thoughts and become the subject of his works. Therefore, it is not surprising then to find languages of symbols and images free-floating in the infinite space in his artworks. At times we can also see that the figure representations bear a trademark of indigenous tradition.

Sanat Kar’s creations symbolizes a bonding of mankind and humanity: his demise is a great loss for the entire art world, he will be always remembered for the contributions that he made in the field of visual art and as an educator who has carved a niche in the hearts of his students.