Progressive Artists’ Group, Bombay

Progressive Artists’ Group, Bombay was established Francis Newton Souza, first post-independence Indian artist to achieve high recognition in the West. It’s early members were S. H. Raza. M. F. Husain and Manishi Dey.

Other prominent painters of the group included S. K. Bakre, Akbar Padamsee, Ram Kumar and Tyeb Mehta.

They wanted to paint with absolute freedom for content and technique. This group was basically an omnium-gatherum of different styles and influences. The most important influence on the group was of European Modernism. The group later lost into oblivion in late 1950s.

Objective of the Progressive Artists’ Group

The objective of the Progressive Artists’ Group was to break away with the revivalist nationalism established by the Bengal school of art and to encourage an Indian avant-garde, engaged at an international level. The group was highly influenced by the Indian inner version or the antar-gyan and the same was now being portrayed in their art rather than the European realism.