???I???m a very special Collector???s bear,
So handle me with extra care!
I need someone who knows to treasure,
More than money can ever measure.
Someone who???s learned that life is love,
Someone who watches stars above!
A person who stops to smell the flowers,
A person who walks in April showers.
For I have so much love to share...that I???ll go with you anywhere!???
George Martin The first recipient of Art India Magazine???s Promising Artist Award in 2005, George Martin was born in Kerala in 1973. He received his Bachelor???s degree in Sculpture from the College of Fine Arts, Thiruvanthapuram in 1998, and his Master???s degree in the same from the Government College of Art and Craft, Kolkata, in 2001.
George Martin???s works are a spectral of luscious colour. He paints a magical view of the world around us, which appears to be spinning at a dizzying speed. His acrylic abstractions exuberate copious amounts of energy and are an ultimate representation of modern urban life. There are no limitations to colour or form in Martin???s visual extravaganza; in a single canvas he is able to merge multiple cultures. However, when viewed more carefully, Martin???s densely populated compositions resonate the transitory and disunited true nature of our world.
Martin???s most recent solo shows include ???Cavities??? at Palette Art Gallery, New Delhi, in 2008; ???Lost Article??? at India Habitat Centre, New Delhi, in 2007; and ???Footloose of Blue Pencil??? at Bombay Art Gallery, Mumbai, in 2006. The artist has also participated in a number of group shows, the most recent being, ???From Surface to Origin: Journeys Through Recent Art From India and Thailand??? at Gallery Soulflower, Bangkok, in 2008; ???Shifting Terrains Altered Realities??? at the Shrine Gallery and Empire Art, New Delhi, in 2008; ???Images/Urban/Neon??? at 1 x 1 Art Gallery, Dubai, in 2007; and ???Encode- Decode??? at Palette Art Gallery, New Delhi, in 2006. Besides the Promising Artist Award, Martin also won the Kashi Visual Art Award in 2005.
About WISH - A – TEDDY
We’re delighted to present “WISH-A-TEDDY”: a collection of hand-painted teddy bears by renowned Indian artists and designers in collaboration with Make-A-Wish Foundation®.
These beautifully hand-painted teddies have been created by Paresh Maity, Baiju Parthan, GR Iranna, Jayasri Burman, Nilofer Suleman, Vibha Galhotra, George Martin, Manil & Rohit Gupta, Seema Kohli, Valay Shende and many others, and designers like Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla, Sabyasachi, Anamika Khanna and Maheka Mirpuri, these teddies surely make for collectors’ items.
Make-A-Wish Foundation® of India is a non-profit organization dedicated to granting the most cherished wish of children aged 3 -18, living with life-threatening illnesses, irrespective of their socio-economic status, caste, race or religion. It has branches in Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Coimbatore, Chennai, Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune, and is headquartered in Mumbai. The Foundation conducted its first ever fundraiser in India, "WISH - A - TEDDY", earlier this April at the Palladium Hotel, Mumbai. This event was planned to celebrate World Wish Day – a global day of wish granting which falls on 29th April, 2014.
The works in the present collection are the works which were part of this exhibition.
The teddy bear is a symbol of childhood and joy, and it also makes for an endearing sculpture that brings on a smile, across all age groups.