Vijay Sharma
| Vijay Sharma | |
|---|---|
| Born |
12 September 1962 (age 54) Himachal Pradesh, India |
| Occupation | Painter |
| Spouse(s) | Neeru Sharma |
| Children | Sarang Sharma Mittu Pinju |
| Parent(s) | Anant Ram Sharma Geeta Devi |
| Awards |
Padma Shri Kalidas Samman Himachal Pradesh State Award Ministry of Textiles Award AIFACS Award Madhya Pradesh State Award |
| Website | Official web site |
Vijay Sharma is an Indian painter and art historian, known for his expertise in the Pahari school of miniature painting. He was honored by the Government of India, in 2012, with the fourth highest Indian civilian award of Padma Shri.
I started visiting the museum at the age of 13 and the museum stories amazed me every other day. Fine paintings done with hands and that too by the local artists were a revelation for me. I inquired about artists, their families but sadly they had given up painting long ago. They were carpenters, labourers, government officials, everything but not painters., says Vijay Sharma.
Vijay Sharma was born on 12 September 1962 to Anant Ram Sharma and Geeta Devi at Mohalla Ramgarh, of the district of Chamba, in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. His father, a bus driver working for Himachal Road Transport Corporation, noticed his son's penchant for drawing and sent the boy to Banares to learn painting, when he was only 15. Though Sharma returned from Banares after a week's stay, he continued to hone his skills under Mirza Ashgar Beg and by visiting the Bhuri Singh Museum in Chamba. Meanwhile, he passed Hindi Prabhakar examination and, later, secured a master's degree (MA) in History from Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla. After his academics, Sharma went back to Banares to learn miniature painting at Bharat Kala Bhawan under the tutelage of Ved Pal Sharma. He also attended an archaeological training camp conducted at Hampi, Karnataka by the Archaeological Survey of India in 1985.
Sharma started working as a painter for the Himachal Road Transport Corporation at the age of 18 but, later, shifted to the Department of Language and Culture, Government of Himachal Pradesh as a conservation assistant. He resigned from the post in 1988 and is an accredited artist at the Bhuri Singh Museum, Chamba, Himachal Pradesh.
Vijay Sharma has founded Shilpa Parishad, a non governmental organization, for promoting the genre of miniature painting, especially the Pahari school and serves as its president. He has also participated in many artist workshops such as the NZCC All India miniature painting workshop at Kalagram, Chandigarh in 2006, the Janapravaha artist workshop of 2005, workshop organized by the Birla Academy of Art and Culture, Kolkata in 2007, miniature camp in connection with the Gita Jayanti Utsav of 2008, miniature camp held at the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla in 2009, camp organized by Mohanlal Sukhadia University, Udaipur in 2011 and Harmony Painting Residency 2012 organized by Harmony Art Foundation, Mumbai.
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