Jangarh Singh Shyam

Jangarh Singh Shyam was a member of the Gond tribe that lived in Madhya Pradesh. He was discovered in the 1980s by an Indian collective led by Jagdish Swaminathan during a study trip, the aim of which was to create a collection of tribal art in Bhopal.

While the members of the expedition were in Mandla District, their attention was caught by the painted walls of a house. They inquired about the artist and it was thus that they met Jangarh Singh Shyam. He was only a teenager at the time but his painting style was nonetheless very striking. They invited him to Bhopal so that he could paint a series of works on paper and canvas, a series that is today held in Bharat Bhavan.

Jangarh Singh Shyam committed suicide in 2001 in Japan. He left behind him a particularly powerful and versatile oeuvre. Exceptional creativity is the hallmark of all his output, from his early, raw, and expressive works to his last refined pieces.