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{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2022}}{{Use Indian English|date=June 2022}}

{{Short description|Indian artist (1910–2000)}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Devyani Krishna
| birth_date = 1918
| death_date = 2000
| alma_mater = [[Sir Jamsetjee Jeejebhoy School of Art]], [[Mumbai]]
| spouse = {{marriage|Kanwal Krishna|1942}}
}}
'''Devyani''' (or Devayani) '''Krishna''' (1918 - 2000) was an Indian painter, print-maker and a teacher. She was also involved in research work about Indian toys, folk motifs and batik work.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Devayani Krishna |url=https://www.saffronart.com/artists/devayani--krishna |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250219041611/https://www.saffronart.com/artists/devayani--krishna |archive-date=2025-02-19 |access-date=2025-05-06 |website=Saffronart}}</ref> Devyani was regarded as 'India's foremost woman artist' of the day by the art critic [[Richard Bartholomew]] for her diverse body of works that she showcased in India and Europe.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Untitled (Townscape) - Devayani Krishna {{!}} The Surya Collection: Property of Mrs. Ute Rettberg |url=https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2022/the-surya-collection-property-from-mrs-ute-rettberg/untitled-townscape |access-date=2022-06-22 |website=[[Sotheby's]]}}</ref>

Along with her husband Kanwal Krishna, she had traveled to the [[Himalayas]] and documented the arts & culture of the region through their artworks. Her paintings are deeply influenced by her experiences during this tour.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Grey Art Gallery |url=http://archive.org/details/abbygreyindianmo0000grey |title=Abby Grey and Indian modernism : selections from the NYU art collection |date=2015 |publisher=New York, NY : Grey Art Gallery, New York University |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-0-934349-18-5 |pages=74}}</ref>

== Early life and education ==
Devyani was born in [[Indore]], [[Madhya Pradesh]]. In the 1930s, the city developed as a center for modernist experiments in the [[International Style (architecture)|International Style]] under the patronage of [[Yashwant Rao Holkar II]], the Maharaja of Indore.<ref name=":2" /> He had commissioned German architect [[Eckart Muthesius]] to design and develop the [[Manik Bagh]] palace. The king had also collected works made by the sculptor [[Constantin Brâncuși]] and architect [[Le Corbusier]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Veiled Mask, n.d. |url=https://greyartgallery.nyu.edu/artworks/veiled-mask-2/ |access-date=2022-03-13 |website=Grey Art Gallery |date=7 December 2015 |language=en-US}}</ref>

These developments in the city had an influence on Devyani from an early age. Moreover, her first art lessons came under the guidance of the master artist and teacher D. D. Deolalikar.<ref name=":0" /> In the year 1936, she moved to [[Mumbai|Bombay]] and joined [[Sir Jamsetjee Jeejebhoy School of Art|Sir J. J. School of Art]] to pursue her interest in painting. After graduating in 1940, she also completed a specialization in [[mural]] painting.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=Artist Gellary - DEVYANI KRISHNA |url=http://goaartgallery.com/krishna_devyani.htm |access-date=2022-03-13 |website=goaartgallery.com}}</ref>

== Career ==
Devyani had married fellow artist Kanwal Krishna in 1942. Both of them retreated to the Himalayas and travelled through [[Sikkim]], the Tibetian border and the [[North-West Frontier Province]] from 1949 to 1952.<ref name=":0" /> Their paintings from the travels included Tibetian masks, their ritual dances and several aspects of [[Buddhist art]] among others.<ref name=":2" /> These were also tumultuous times for people in the region. The couple witnessed the loss of autonomy of the Tibetian Buddhists to China. In 1951, China got complete control over Tibet which sent Buddhists into exile.<ref name=":1" />

After returning from the trip, Krishna joined as an art teacher at [[Modern School (New Delhi)|Modern School]], New Delhi. She taught at the institute from 1954 to 1977, when she retired as the Head of the Art Department.<ref name=":3" />

=== Style ===
Devyani's works show her strong sense of design which are well complemented with a suitable composition and color harmony.<ref name=":3" /> Irrespective of the medium, her artworks included sacred symbols and their concepts were based on the universal themes of family, war and religion.<ref name=":0" />

Devyani's fascination with Tibetian and Buddhist culture was subsequently incorporated into her paintings.<ref name=":3" /> When she was asked about the dark aesthetic of her painting titled ''Veiled Mask'', she had replied,"No, it is not sad. This is a veiled mask. It is very hard to get to know people. This is just a human being behind two masks."<ref name=":1" /> Through such imagery, she responded to the tragedy that was unraveling in front of her during her travels in the Himalayas.

=== Reception ===
In 1972, Richard Bartholomew, the art critic at [[The Times of India]] wrote about the rise of printmaking in India from the 1960s. He described Devyani as 'perhaps the maturest printmaker in India'. Further, he also added, "She brings both a philosophy and sensitivity to printmaking that are exceptionally rare. Her prints carry the impress of a mystique, besides being technically interesting."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Old Delhi - Devayani Krishna {{!}} The Surya Collection: Property from Mrs. Ute Rettberg |url=https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2022/the-surya-collection-property-from-mrs-ute-rettberg/old-dehli |access-date=2022-06-22 |website=[[Sotheby's]]}}</ref>

== Works ==

=== Public collections ===
The artworks of Devyani are housed in the [[National Gallery of Modern Art|National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Devayani Krishna |url=https://indianculture.gov.in/indian-culture-repository?search_api_fulltext=Devayani+Krishna |access-date=2022-06-22 |website=Indian Culture}}</ref> Delhi Art Gallery,<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=Devyani Krishna {{!}} DAG |url=https://dagworld.com/artists/devyani-krishna/ |access-date=2022-06-22 |website=dagworld |language=en-US}}</ref> and Waswo X. Waswo Collection<ref>{{Cite web |title=Devayani Krishna {{!}} The Waswo X. Waswo Collection of Indian Printmaking |url=http://collection.waswoxwaswo.com/moderns-gallery.php?galleryid=89 |access-date=2022-06-22 |website=collection.waswoxwaswo.com}}</ref> to name a few.

=== Exhibitions ===
* 1941 - First solo show at Calcutta<ref name=":3" />
* 1996 - ''Modern Indian Paintings - One Hundred Years, Part I'', Kumar Gallery, New Delhi, India<ref>{{Cite web |title=Exhibitions {{!}} Modern Indian Paintings |url=https://kumargallery.com/exhibition/modern-indian-paintings |access-date=2022-03-13 |website=Kumar Gallery |language=en-US}}</ref>
* 2005 - ''Golden Jubilee: Spirit Set Free,'' Kumar Gallery, New Delhi, India<ref>{{Cite web |title=Exhibitions {{!}} Golden Jubilee: Spirit Set Free |url=https://kumargallery.com/exhibition/golden-jubilee-spirit-set-free |access-date=2022-03-13 |website=Kumar Gallery |language=en-US}}</ref>
* 2015 - ''Abby Grey and Indian Modernism: Selections from the NYU Art Collection,'' Grey Art Gallery, NYU, New York<ref>{{Cite web |title=Abby Grey and Indian Modernism: Selections from the NYU Art Collection |url=https://greyartgallery.nyu.edu/exhibition/abby-grey-indian-modernism-selections-nyu-art-collection/ |access-date=2022-03-13 |website=Grey Art Gallery |date=28 September 2016 |language=en-US}}</ref>
* 2020 - ''The Fifties Show'', Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi, India<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Fifties Show |url=https://dagworld.com/exhibitions/the-fifties-show/ |access-date=2022-03-13 |website=DAG}}</ref>
* 2021 - ''A Place in the Sun: Women Artists from 20th Century India'', Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi, India<ref>{{Cite web |title=A Place in the Sun |url=https://dagworld.com/A-Place-in-the-Sun/ |access-date=2022-03-13 |website=DAG}}</ref>

== References ==
<references />

== External links ==
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-oM98k1UpY Talk] by daughter Mridula Vichitra on [[YouTube]]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Krishna, Devyani}}
[[Category:Sir J. J. School of Art alumni]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian women painters]]
[[Category:1910 births]]
[[Category:2000 deaths]]
[[Category:Women artists from Madhya Pradesh]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian women artists]]
[[Category:People from Indore]]

Devyani Krishna - Revision history

imported>Harshdaank at 10:24, 7 May 2026