Why the ‘father of modern art in Nepal’ Lain Singh Bangdel is an unsung hero – and how his legacy is being preserved today
The late master rubbed shoulders with Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, but he’s remained largely uncelebrated outside his homeland – until now, with a new solo exhibition travelling the globe
The Museum of Nepali Art in Kathmandu is one of the few places where you can find Lain Singh Bangdel’s work in the country. In an un-self-conscious gallery, among several celebrated contemporary artists, hangs a rare, 1989 self-portrait – Bangdel, the “father of modern art in Nepal”, with eyes closed and a subtle, contented smile, as if sighing in artistic fulfilment after an illustrious career that had, by the time of painting, spanned five decades and four countries.
Bangdel’s relevance in his Himalayan home, however, has not translated into the kind of recognition enjoyed across South Asia by some of his contemporaries, such as Bangladeshi artist Zainul Abedin, Hungarian-Indian painter Amrita Sher-Gil or Indian artist Maqbool Fida Husain. Bangdel’s name is mostly unheard of in art circles where he learned and practised his craft, mostly in Paris and London.
But now, 22 years after his death, the campaign to introduce Bangdel to a wider audience is gradually gathering momentum. The responsibility to showcase his paintings at home and abroad, previously undertaken by his art historian daughter, Dina, who died in 2017, is now shouldered by her husband, Bibhakar Shakya.
“He is a national treasure,” says United States-based Shakya, who manages Bangdel’s estate. “He introduced modern art in Nepal, and his art should be known to as many people as possible. His wish was that people should see his art and be inspired by it and learn from it, in Nepal and all over the world.”
Shakya’s mission began with shows in New York and Houston in 2022, London in 2023 and, more recently, Kathmandu. Hong Kong is the latest stop, with Bangdel’s first solo exhibition in the city showing at Rossi & Rossi until November 16.
At the Wong Chuk Hang gallery, a selection of Bangdel’s paintings from 1953 to 1994 is on display, highlighting his evolving style. The exhibition’s Kathmandu-based co-curator and scholar of Nepali art and culture, Swosti Rajbhandari Kayastha, says the paintings capture the struggles and emotions of his subjects through expressionism, cubism and abstract styles, while his landscapes depicting Nepali village architecture and the misty peak of Everest reflect longing for home and connection to nature. His figurative paintings portray everyday scenes, including a man playing a flute and a mother carrying her child, while his nude series, at home or abroad, is a rarity in Nepali art.
