Goodbye, master printmaker
Condolences have been pouring in for Padma Shri recipient Krishna Reddy, a noted sculptor and printmaker, who passed away on Wednesday night (IST) in New York. He was 93. Born in Nandanoor, Andhra Pradesh, Reddy studied art at the Vishwa-Bharati University, Santiniketan, and went on to head the art section at Kalakshetra, Chennai. His long-time friend, Sumeshwar Sharma, who runs an artist collective in Mumbai and has spent many hours in the company of Reddy and his artist-wife, Judy Blum Reddy, says that for him, "Krishna wasn't the kind of person who spoke about Modernism. He had a spiritual quest in the arts."

Reddy was known for his close association with Nandalal Bose, one of the pioneers of modern Indian art, and philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti. In fact, he was one of the earliest students of Rishi Valley School, founded by Krishnamurti. Sharma says that Reddy's formation as both artist and teacher were through these two figures. "Bose told him to watch a leaf forming, that it could be a kind of conceptual art. He taught him the idea of experimentation," he adds. Like Krishnamurti, Reddy was deeply associated with teaching — he had lectured in universities and art spaces the world over. Reddy will be remembered for his contribution to printmaking. The artist pioneered and mastered the colour viscosity process, which greatly simplified the technique of using varying ink viscosity. To you, master printmaker, we bid farewell.