The National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA), in collaboration with the Gujral Foundation and the Ministry of Culture, is set to inaugurate “Satish Gujral: A Century in Form, Fire, and Vision”, a monumental retrospective celebrating the life and legacy of one of India’s most versatile and visionary modernists. The preview opens this evening, with the exhibition running from January 16 to March 31, 2026.
Curated by Kishore Singh, the NGMA retrospective spans over seven decades of Gujral’s prolific practice, tracing his evolution from painter and sculptor to muralist and architect. Featuring rare drawings, paintings, sculptures, and archival material, the show revisits his early Partition-era works such as Mourners and Snare of Memory, alongside monumental public commissions that transformed India’s post-Independence visual identity.
Untitled and Mourning En Masse
In parallel, an Architectural Retrospective and Opening of the Gujral House, curated by Reha Sodhi, will take place at the artist’s restored residence at 16, Firoze Gandhi Road, offering viewers an intimate glimpse into Gujral’s built legacy. His celebrated design for the Belgian Embassy in New Delhi, listed among the 1000 Outstanding Buildings of the Twentieth Century symbolizes his belief in architecture as “living sculpture.”
The exhibition programmes extend beyond static display, with walkthroughs, panel discussions, documentary screenings, and community events illuminating Gujral’s multifaceted journey. His lifelong philosophy that art is not escape but reconstruction resonates deeply in an India still grappling with questions of identity, resilience, and renewal.
Honoured with the Padma Vibhushan (1999) and international recognitions including the Order of the Crown (Belgium) and Da Vinci Award (Mexico), Satish Gujral (1925–2020) remains an enduring figure in Indian modernism—a humanist who transformed adversity into art and architecture into poetry.
Established in 2008 by Mohit and Feroze Gujral, The Gujral Foundation is dedicated to supporting artists, architects, and cultural innovators through collaborative platforms and forward-thinking initiatives. Guided by a vision to expand how Indian contemporary art engages with global discourse, the Foundation has spearheaded digital initiatives such as Artdemic and Vuedemic.
For more information, visit www.gujralfoundation.org
All images courtesy of Gujral foundation.
Athmaja Biju is the Editor at Abir Pothi. She is a Translator and Writer working on Visual Culture.
