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A A Almelkar

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Abdul Rahim Almelkar believed that he must have learnt painting when he was still in his mother`s womb, much like Arjuna`s son Abhimanyu in the Mahabharat. "My mother was busy embroidering all through her pregnancy and I probably inherited art from her at that stage," he says.

Born in Solapur, (in Maharashtra) he began painting at the young age of seven. After a conventional education in a local school, he joined the Sir J. J. School...
Read More Abdul Rahim Almelkar believed that he must have learnt painting when he was still in his mother`s womb, much like Arjuna`s son Abhimanyu in the Mahabharat. "My mother was busy embroidering all through her pregnancy and I probably inherited art from her at that stage," he says.

Born in Solapur, (in Maharashtra) he began painting at the young age of seven. After a conventional education in a local school, he joined the Sir J. J. School of Arts in Mumbai. During his student years, he won several awards at shows organized by the Art Society of India and the Bombay Art Society.

Almelkar considered Khatri, a folk painter from Gujarat, as his true teacher. Khatri instilled into the young aspirant a pursuit for perfect draftsmanship. "In those days, there was `no inner eye and outer eye`. A single vision informed the work of most artists," says Almelkar. He belonged to a tradition of stylized "Indian" paintings; with a lot of detailing and elements from miniature art tradition that were at its peak when he was still studying at the art college.

Like all erstwhile artists, he branched out early in his career and evolved his own style. Ordinary folk, fishermen and tribal people were central to most of his works. He presented the tribal people against the background of simple decorative motifs that they used to beautify their homes with and which also had religious meanings. Almelkar often traveled in the jungles of Vidharbha, (in Maharashtra) sketching birds and trees in sanctuaries and the colorful tribal people inhabiting those localities.

Keeping in mind the fundamentals of drawing, he did both naturalistic as well as figurative studies, with just a touch of stylization to accommodate a folk style. It recalls to the mind traditional Javanese Art, which in turn has been influenced by the art of greater India.

Applying colors with his fingers and finishing the work with a clear outline in waterproof ink, he retained a sense of lndianess in his depictions, which in almost all cases were simple portrayals of people. He also experimented with cardboard as the base of his works. Almelkar often used the paste of cowries to import a shine to the surface of his paintings.

Almelkar was the Principal of a private art institute called `Nutan Kala Mandir` in Bangalore. He later joined as a lecturer at the Sir J.J School of Arts in 1968. His shows won acclaim in Malaysia and in other Asian capitals too.
Almelkar passed away on December 1982 at the age of 62.

Honours and Awards

1977 Painted A Happy Family, Passing Through a Beautiful Garden, for The...

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PAST AUCTIONS

Showing 4 of 19 works

Winter Online Auction 17-18 December 2024

A A Almelkar

Untitled

Gouache on cardboard pasted on mount board

16.25 x 14.25 in

Winning bid
$8,571
Rs 7,20,000
(Inclusive of buyer's premium)

Lot 17 Details

Evening Sale 14 September 2024

A A Almelkar

Untitled

Gouache on cardboard pasted on mount board

16.25 x 14.25 in

Winning bid
$12,289
Rs 10,20,000
(Inclusive of buyer's premium)

Lot 51 Details

Summer Online Auction 26-27 June 2024

A A Almelkar

Untitled

Gouache on cardboard

18.25 x 13.25 in

Winning bid
$4,337
Rs 3,60,000
(Inclusive of buyer's premium)

Lot 52 Details

Summer Online Auction 26-27 June 2024

A A Almelkar

Untitled

Oil on canvas

30 x 35.5 in

Winning bid
$28,916
Rs 24,00,000
(Inclusive of buyer's premium)

See all works in past auctions

PAST StoryLTD AUCTIONS

Showing 4 of 4 works

Friday Five 5 April 2024

A A Almelkar

Untitled

Gouache on cardboard

15.5 x 24.25 in

Winning bid
$7,317
Rs 6,00,000
(Inclusive of buyer's premium)

Friday Five 11 June 2021

A A Almelkar

Untitled (Two Women)

Watercolour and gouache on paper

8.25 x 9.5 in

Winning bid
$2,070
Rs 1,46,940
(Inclusive of buyer's premium)

Lot 21 Details

No-Reserve Auction of Modern and Contemporary Art 16-17 January 2018

A A Almelkar

Untitled

Watercolour, waterproof ink, pen and ink...

20 x 13.5 in

Winning bid
$2,856
Rs 1,79,928
(Inclusive of buyer's premium)

No-reserve Auction of Art 7-8 July 2015

A A Almelkar

Untitled

Gouache on cardboard pasted on mount board

14.5 x 15 in

Winning bid
$5,624
Rs 3,54,300
(Inclusive of buyer's premium)

EXHIBITIONS

Showing 2 of 2 works

Works on Paper: Apparao Art for Education. 15-28 September 2023

A A Almelkar

Untitled

Pen on paper

11.25 x 8.5 in

Works on Paper: Apparao Art for Education. 15-28 September 2023

A A Almelkar

Untitled

Pencil on paper pasted on paper

11.25 x 8.5 in

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