PANAJI
Eminent Goan artist and painter of international repute Laxman Pai passed away on Sunday evening sources close to him said. He was 95
Pai, a former principal of the Goa College of Art, breathed his last at his home in Dona Paula.
Born in Goa in 1926, Pai was honoured with several prestigious awards, including Padma Bhushan, Padma Shri, Nehru Award and Lalit Kala Akademi Award. He belonged to Pai Fondekar family of Margao.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant expressed grief over Pai's death.
"Deeply saddened by the passing away of renowned Goan artist Padma Bhushan Shri Laxman Pai. Goa has lost a gem today. We will always remember his immense contribution in the field of art. My heartfelt condolences to his family. Om Shanti," he said on Twitter.
A recipient of several awards, Pai’s contribution to the art college is immense and for this he was highly respected by his students, many of whom were still in his touch.
Noted Goan artist Shridhar Kamat Bambolkar, who was a student of Pai for five years, recalls that Indianness was dominant in all his paintings. Similarly, Pai was very proud of Goa and that would reflect in his artworks too.
“It was during Pai’s tenure that the art and artists in Goa were promoted. Pai’s last wish was to hold an exhibition of all his paintings in Goa, but that wish remained incomplete,” laments Bambolkar.
Dr Subodh Kerkar, noted artist from Goa, remembers Pai offering his painting to be displayed in Kerkar’s newly started small art gallery. “Laxman Pai had very good understanding of the Indian classical music and his serial of paintings on Ragas is unmatchable, even now,” says Dr Kerkar, adding, “He believed that all arts should speak to each other.
Pai’s favourite painting was ‘Mazhi Aai’ (My Mother) which can be compared with veteran Marathi poet late Narayan Surve’s ‘Mazhi Aai’. His portrait on Jawaharlal Nehru is also popular among the artist community. “My own favourite painting of Pai, is of a Goan woman, whose hair flows like the leaves of a coconut tree,” says Dr Kerkar.
Pai studied art at Sir J J School of Art in Mumbai from 1943 to 1947 and his tryst with art was at his uncle’s ‘Mauzo Photo Studio’ in Margao, where he used to touch up the black and white photographs with paint.
Pai has to his credit more than 110 one-man shows across the globe. His solo exhibitions have been held at London, Munich, Hanover, Stuttgart, New York City, Bremen, San Francisco, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Goa and São Paulo.
