Rain Forests and the Circle of Life

The exhibition, Rainforests and the Circle of Life, hosted by the High Commissioner, His Excellency Mr Virendra Gupta, is a travelling trilogy of paintings, installations, films and performance by the eminent Indian artist Mr Manav Gupta.

The exhibition opens coming Thursday, 21 February, at the National Museum of Cultural History in Pretoria and will close 10 March 2013.

Manav Gupta, who trained in Kolkata at the Academy of Fine Arts under Rathin Maitra and under his guru Vasant Pandit, currently works in New Delhi.

He has pioneered collaborative art as performances and mega murals. He has won international acclaim for his first-of-a-kind six storey high 5000 sq ft in facade and 10000 sq ft of total painted surface; the commissioned mega mural at the headquarters of leading telecom corporate giant in Gurgaon and The Tree of Life, the tallest and largest three-dimensional indoor staircase mural by an artist - it covers approximately 5,000 sq ft of visible frontage through a glass façade and 10,000 sq ft of total painted surface.

He has pioneered co-creations with his "Jugalbandis" (Collaborations) with leading musicians, poets and dancers, including Dr L.Subramanium, Shubha Mudgal, Anup Jalota and Rahul Sharma where he translates a performing artist's oeuvre LIVE on stage onto canvas.

Working on a 360 degree platform of canvases, video installations and performances he has collaborated with dance troupes and audiences in public art projects besides his performances and exhibitions at different venues.

Gupta’s works have been sold by Christie’s Christie's, Bonhams, Philip de Pury and are in leading permanent public collections around the world including the Parliament of India, the Rashtrapati Bhawan, the Royal family of Oman, Indian embassies abroad, Chitrakala Parishad and Birla Academy museums.

He has co authored a book of poems and paintings with former President of India Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, published by Penguin India.(2002–2005). He also delivered guest lectures on art, environment and collaborative public art practices at the San Jose State University and the ICD, Berlin in 2010. He also creates single edition functional sculptures and public installations with varied media including iron, steel, wood, discarded roots of trees, glass, recycled scrap metal and clay for interior and exterior corporate and private spaces.