Discovery of the True Nature of Things: Biren De’s Neo-Tantric Art

Art is often an endeavor to preserve and process the beauty of the perceived world. However, some artists use their canvas to explore the subliminal, the mystical and even the divine. It takes an artist of rare caliber and sensitivity to dabble in this form of exploration. Biren De was one such artist took his audience beyond the limitations of sight and into the vast unknown.

Born in Faridpur, Bangladesh, Biren De (1926 – 2011) moved with his family to Kolkata where he attended the Government College of Art.
“My approach to art is exploratory,” he once said. “As a child, I very often used to run away from home, just to be able to go somewhere, to see and know about things myself. The same runaway child probably still persists in me. Each blank canvas I take up extends to me the eternal call of adventure and I go, riding the vehicle of paint and brush.”

Later, he joined the College of Art, Delhi as a faculty member. During his tenure, he was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship which took him to New York city for a year. This period marked an important shift in his artistic expression leading him to develop his signature “Neo-Tantric” style dominated by concentric shapes, crescents and orbs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Later, he joined the College of Art, Delhi as a faculty member. During his tenure, he was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship which took him to New York city for a year. This period marked an important shift in his artistic expression leading him to develop his signature “Neo-Tantric” style dominated by concentric shapes, crescents and orbs.

His imagery became more introspective relying on tantric symbols such as the lotus and wheel. His paintings from this and subsequent periods are also marked by brilliant colours and a central luminosity.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Resisting any form of categorisation, he remarked, “I am not a cult painter and my work is not the result of any esoteric practice. But if you agree that the essential objective of Tantra is the discovery of the true nature of thing, of self-realisation, then I am a tantric and so are you, and anybody.”

Images: Saffronart, DAG, Artnet, Pinterest,