An exhibition from the collection of Museum of Art & Photography
Visual Art
Curated by MAP Academy | 5 May - 21 July 2024
First Floor Gallery | Sunday | 11am
Bhuri Bai – My Life as an Artist
18 January 2025 | Saturday | 7pm
OVERVIEW
Produced by the Museum of Art & Photography and presented in collaboration with MAP Academy, Bhuri Bai – My Life as an Artist is an exhibition of the artist’s autobiographical works. Previously a digital exhibition, the exhibition pair’s Bhuri Bai’s artworks with the research of MAP Academy to animate and intimate her extraordinary personal journey. Growing up in Pithol, a small remote village at the border of Gujarat and Maharashtra, Bhuri Bai was the first woman from the Bhil community to transfer Pithora murals from structures to canvas and paper. In doing so, this has enabled her work to travel worldwide earning Bhuri Bai a Padma Shri title alongside global regard as one of India’s most important contemporary Bhil artists. In its inaugural display, Bhuri Bai – My Life as an artist invites audiences to step into the artist’s life and story through her artworks, from a childhood in the village to global travel as a celebrated artist.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Bhuri Bai is a Bhopal-based artist, illustrator, and muralist celebrated for her pioneering contributions to contemporary Indian art. Hailing from Pithol, a remote village on the Gujarat-Madhya Pradesh border, Bhuri Bai holds the distinction of being the first woman from the Bhil community to transfer the Pithora style of painting, typically depicted as murals, to paper and canvas.
Deeply rooted in the traditions and folklore of the Bhil tribe, Bhuri Bai’s works transform indigenous motifs into vivid compositions that explore themes of nature, community, and cultural identity through vibrant and symbolic storytelling.
Transitioning from painting walls with natural pigments to experimenting with modern mediums, Bhuri Bai has gained recognition both nationally and internationally for preserving and evolving the visual language of the Bhil community.