Latika Katt

Latika Katt
Born(1948-02-20)20 February 1948
United Provinces, India
Died25 January 2025(2025-01-25) (aged 76)
Jaipur, Rajasthan, India
EducationThe Doon School
Banaras Hindu University
Baroda College of Art
Slade School of Fine Art
Known forSculpture
SpouseBalbir Singh Katt
AwardsLalit Kala Academy Award
Beijing Art Biennale Award

Latika Katt (20 February 1948 – 25 January 2025) was an Indian sculptor who specialized in stone carving, metal casting and bronze sculpting.[1] She won the Beijing Art Biennale Award for her bronze work titled "Makar Sankranti at Dashawmeth Ghat, Varanasi.[2]

Life and career

Latika Katt graduated from The Doon School, an all-boys school in Dehradun. She admitted that being in the minority as a girl in an all-boys school gave her confidence and courage in her later years.[3] She started attending the Baroda College of Art to pursue Bachelor of Fine Arts, Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda where she graduated with First Class honours in 1971.[4] She was awarded a scholarship to research at the Slade School of Art, London University, London in 1981.[5]

She first got great recognition in the 1970s for a body of experimental work made from cow dung as she did not have funds for anything else.[3] Her talent was spotted by the politician and Prime Minister Indira Gandhi during an art exhibition, who later encouraged her to take sculpting as a profession.[6] She was a great admirer of Auguste Rodin and used naturalism as her leitmotif.[7] Her interest and association with nature was kindled by her father, a botanist.[3] She taught at Jamia Millia Islamia and Banaras Hindu University for many years starting in 1981 and was the Head of Department of Fine Arts at Jamia Millia Islamia.[4] Claiming to sculpt real people, most of her subjects are her relatives, friends and students.[7]

Katt lived and worked in Delhi and Banaras.[8] She was married to sculptor Balbir Singh Katt, who went missing in 2000.[9] She died on 25 January 2025, at the age of 76.[10]

Exhibitions

Bust of Jawaharlal Nehru (1991) by Latika Katt, India Place, London WC2. Plinth by Peter Leach Associates.

Some art exhibitions showcasing her works:[5]

  • Paris Biennale, Museum of Modern Art, Paris.
  • ‘STREE’ Show at Moscow, Leningrad & Tashkent.
  • The Self and The World: An Exhibition of Indian Women Artists at the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) in Delhi.[11]
  • Chemould Art Gallery and Woodstock Art Gallery, London.
  • Molten Landscapes at Cymroza Art Gallery, Mumbai.[12]
  • Group Show at Gallerie Alternatives, Gurgaon.
  • “Heads”, Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai.
  • Ways of Seeing: Women Artists | Women as Muse, DAG, New Delhi, 2021[13]

Solos: Art Heritage, MMB & Kala Mela Lawns in New Delhi, Calcutta Art Gallery Kolkata, Sculptures, Painting and Prints JAG CYAG[14]

Awards

  • Gujarat State Lalit Kala Academy, Ahmedabad, 1973.
  • All India Fine Arts and Crafts, 1974.
  • Society, New Delhi, 1975 and 1976.
  • Academy of Fine Arts, Calcutta, 1974.
  • Honoured as one of the Five Distinguished Women of Baroda, 1975.
  • International Women's Show at Artists Centre, Bombay, 1975.
  • A.P. Council of Artists, Hyderabad, 1976.
  • National Award, Lalit Kala Academy, New Delhi, 1980.

Scholarships

  • National Cultural Scholarships MSU, UGC New Delhi.
  • International: British Council Scholarship Slade School of Art, London.

References

  1. ↑ http://www.karmayog.in/events/sites/default/files/Final_Catalog.pdf
  2. ↑ "In the News". Artnewsnviews.com. Archived from the original on 22 January 2011. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 "Material Queen". Indian Express. 22 March 2012. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
  4. 1 2 "Ms. Latika Katt, Department of Fine Arts". Old.jmi.ac.in. Retrieved 27 March 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  5. 1 2 "Latika Katt - Gallerie Alternatives". Archived from the original on 6 April 2019. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  6. ↑ Kusumita Das (7 March 2011). "An iron will gets moulded in stone". The Asian Age. Archived from the original on 23 March 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
  7. 1 2 Nair, Uma (20 December 2018). "Latika Katt's talking heads". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  8. ↑ "IBNLive". Features.ibnlive.in.com. Retrieved 27 March 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  9. ↑ Mishra, Subhash (12 June 2000). "Mysterious disappearance of Banaras Hindu University dean gives rise to rumours, allegations". India Today. Retrieved 27 August 2026.
  10. ↑ Latika Katt, one of India’s most prolific sculptors, passes away at 76
  11. ↑ "Voyage of self discovery". India Today. 30 April 1997.
  12. ↑ "The Exhibition". Cymroza Art Gallery. Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  13. ↑ "Latika Katt Artist Profile". DAG. Retrieved 27 August 2026.
  14. ↑ Sheth, Pretima. Dictionary of Indian Art & Artist. Mapin publishing.

Sources

  • Sheth, Pretima. Dictionary of Indian Art & Artist. Mapin publishing.

Further reading

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