Beck & Eggeling International Fine Art is pleased to present the second solo exhibition within two years of the British painter Desmond Lazaro in Düsseldorf. Raised in England, where he also studied painting, Lazaro returned time and again to his cultural roots and studied the art of miniature painting – especially the Pichhvai painting tradition of Rajasthan – for many years, learning all its many facets. The Pichhvai painting tradition comprises many aspects of artistic production, from handmade pigments, canvases and paintbrushes to the actual painting of miniatures with impressive precision and including traditional Indian ornamentation.

The current exhibition comprises a series of small and large format works, most of which were completed in 2011-2012. Whereas Lazaro's working method and handmade painting utensils are firmly anchored within Indian tradition, his subjects are highly contemporary and apparently derived from everyday life, including interiors, letterboxes and pedestrians.

Nevertheless, all objects and figures are part of a culturally and historically rooted iconography and also always reflect the artist's experiences of his own multicultural existence. Lazaro's years of experience of working in the special Pichhvai painting tradition has awarded him international recognition and various exhibitions platforms. His critical examination of the poles of tradition and modernity, time-honoured handicraft and innovation, East and West, religion and secularism makes his visually refined work also thematically relevant on a universal scale.

Desmond Lazaro was born in Leeds in 1968. After completing his university studies, he continued on and obtained a masters degree from the renowned Baroda University in India and wrote his doctoral dissertation on the Pichvai tradition at the Prince's School of Traditional Art in London. In 2004, he founded his own company, which produces handmade paper and pigments. He also established a foundation dedicated to the promotion and revival of traditional art in northern India.

For additional information, high-res images and catalogues, please contact:
Dr. Antonia Lehmann-Tolkmitt
antonia@beck-eggeling.de
Tel: +49 (0)211 210 79 10 or +49 (0)151 270 96 232

Beck & Eggeling
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