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~ artistdavidbartels ~ Leave a comment

I am an established artist specialising in painting the diverse urban and rural landscapes and peoples of India. I live in west London and work from my studio in a beautiful location in rural Devon. I also paint extensively in Britain and Europe.
I was born in Nagpur, in central India into a family that has produced artists and musicians over many generations across several very different regions of the country. When I was 12 years of age I settled with my family in West London.

I frequently return to paint in India and maintain my contact with Indian artists, writers and cultural figures. My subjects vary from the colourful, bustling and vibrant cityscapes of lowland urban India to the most remote, austere and starkly beautiful landscapes of the Himalaya. Some of my visits, particularly to inaccessible parts of the country, have been supported by the government of India, state governments, Indian and UK businesses. I contributed to the Incredible India programme.

I exhibit at respected public and private exhibition venues within London, other parts of the UK and overseas and I accept commissions, including portraits. 

The UK India Business Council (UKIBC) celebrated Independence Day with a year long exhibition of my oil paintings at their prestigious Thameside headquarters at Millbank, London. I participate in UK and international charity auctions supporting disadvantaged individuals and communities in India.

My paintings are in private collections in the UK, Europe, Asia and the United States and held by museum and gallery curators.

I am a professional artist  from an Anglo-Indian family background specialising in painting the people of India and the variety of landscapes where they live. However, I have been influenced by both eastern and western cultures and it is this which defines my art. I am equally satisfied painting western scenes and portraits. 

My family has a long and exotic history covering much of India including the now well known colourful region of Rajasthan, hill stations and numerous places made famous through the Raj. I was born in Nagpur into a family which over the generations produced several artists and musicians. Today Nagpur, with its modern offices and infrastructure is a strident example of India’s new economic success.  When I grew up there it was very different.  

My family lived in a large low bungalow set amid extensive and peaceful treed gardens with wonderful birds and where the sight of leopards was common.  My neighbourhood included  colonial buildings including the cathedral, church and government offices. I spent these early impressionable years watching and absorbed by the paintings of the local artists.

I settled with my parents in west London in 1961 and was introduced to western art.  Under the tutelage of my aunt, herself a talented artist, I spent my youth visiting London’s museums and art galleries, the locations where JMW Turner and Constable and others had painted and sketching in the open spaces of Hampstead Heath. 

I later, as young man, studied art and won prizes.  For family reasons I pursued a successful career in business – but all the time painting and fulfilling private commissions from within the UK and abroad.

In 1983 after raising my family I retired from business to concentrate on painting.  I frequently exhibit in well known public and private venues in London and wider afield and undertake commissions.  I live in London and have a studio in an architecturally important listed property in the beautiful rural landscape around Totnes in Devon. 

Through my exhibitions and charity auctions I support causes benefitting the poor and impoverished in India including the ‘Women’s Alliance of Ladakh’ and ‘The Loomba Trust’.
 

Selected Recent Exhibitions

Indian Scenes
Nehru Centre, Mayfair, London

An Artist’s Journey
Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan UK Centre, Institute of Indian Arts and Culture, West Kensington, London

Images of India
UK India Business Council, Millbank, London

The Great Create,
‘Greenway’ National Trust, Galmpton, Devon 

Indian Mountain and Other Landscapes
Birdwood House Gallery, Totnes, Devon

Important but Lesser Known Places in India
Highgate Gallery, Literary & Scientific, London

Landscapes of the Himalaya
National Mountaineering Centre, Rheged,Cumbria

Indian Scenes
Charity Auction supporting ‘The Loomba Trust’
Banqueting House, Whitehall, London

PM Gallery, Walpole Park, Ealing, London

Images of India
Nehru Centre, Mayfair, London

Harbour House Gallery, Kingsbridge, Devon

Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Institute of Indian Arts and Culture, West Kensington, London
 

Women’s Alliance of Ladakh

Bruce Castle Museum, Haringey, London