Growing up in Gujarat, and particularly in Baroda, has contributed greatly to my personal creative journey. Elders with connections in the fields of literature and arts of course helped trigger my creative quest; but I would still give more credit to the city we were in – the cultural epicenter of the state of Gujarat. My first visit to the Fine Arts faculty of M. S. University was a life-changer. I remember being enamored by the students painting in the studios. I loved the space and light in the art gallery and the artists’ work on display. The wall art and massive wooden sculptures strewn around the campus fascinated my young mind. I met many stalwart artists (Pingale, Dhumal, Khakhar) through my father and grandfather; but back then I was too young to grasp their stature in the world of art.

However, art and artists have continued to inspire me. Studying an artist’s style, genre, preferred media and writing about their work is one of my favourite tasks in my career as an art and design critic.

Though there are numerous celebrated artists living and working in Gujarat, in this Gujarat special issue, we celebrate five versatile veteran artists, who are Gujarati by birth – Padmashri Jyotindra Bhatt, Ghulam Mohammad Shaikh, Vrindavan Solanki, Amit Ambalal, and Dhruva Mistry.

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