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Amar Nath Sehgal | Biography | Life | Artworks

Amar Nath Sehgal Biography, Life & Artworks

A philosopher, poet, artist and craftsman, Amar Nath Sehgal’s unique work in India and abroad reflects his quest to fathom the bedrock of man’s experience, rather than a preoccupation with any particular style.

For, as he says, the style of his work is conditioned by the material, technique and the mode of perception at the moment of creation. Sehgal observes beauty, wherever it be, regardless of time, scale or culture. He is moved by people, their problems and their sufferings.

His work conveys an unshakable belief in the dignity and creative potential of life and the human form.

That is why, perhaps, he reacts so strongly against the negative aspects of society. He cannot tolerate suppression of individual freedom, and it is no coincidence that some of his most powerful works have been executed in the memory of victims of political brutalities, such as Cries Unheard, Anguished Cries, Aggression and Submission and The Tortured. They express his contempt for the increasing ugliness in life.

Amar Nath Sehgal & His Sculpture

The purpose of a painter or sculptor is primarily, if not exclusively, aesthetic. The works of Sehgal are indeed aesthetic artefacts; they effectively communicate his thoughts and feelings and serve as a bridge between the artist and his audience.

Sehgal’s specific aesthetic purpose may be described as the intent to inform and persuade, to express through artefacts the ideas and feelings that are important to humanity.

Amar Nath Sehgal: The Lightness of Bronze

One of Sehgal’s recent and dramatic sculpture Passage of Time displayed in New Delhi in 1992, presented three suspended forms in a dark ambience, magically capturing the mind of the viewer.

Though not strictly a kinetic sculpture, it was based on the idea that light and movement can create a work of art.

Objects may be made to gyrate or, as in his sculpture, made to form interesting patterns of light and shadow with changing effects of coloured light, to create moving shadows and reflections.

It was a two-and-half minute sculpture conceived with controlled light and sound, wherein the artist had shown that time passed, leaving us, sadly, barbaric and inhuman.

Though primarily a sculptor, Sehgal is at home in many media including drawing, painting, tapestry and various graphic media.

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