Diwan Manna

Diwan Manna (born 17 June 1958) is an Indian conceptual artist and photographer. He completed his study in graphic art and printmaking from the Government College of Art, Chandigarh in 1982. He served as the chairman of Chandigarh Lalit Kala Akademi, State Academy of Art, Department of Culture, Chandigarh Administration. Currently, he is serving as the president of Punjab Lalit Kala Akademi, State Academy of Art, Ministry of Culture, Government of Punjab, India.

He is a recipient of the National Academy Award by the Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi. Some of his artworks include Alienation (1980), Violence (1985), Waking the Dead (1996), Shores of the Unknown (2000), After the Turmoil (2003), and Master of Light, and Le Corbusier (2006).

Early life Manna was born in 1958, in Bareta,

On 17 June 2008, he was appointed the chairman of Chandigarh Lalit Kala Akademi, and held the position until 31 July 2015. He first received the All India Fine Arts and Crafts Society award in 1995, and the second time in 1996.

Artworks Manna is one of the first artists from India to practice conceptual photography. His work combines images with objects, moving within a consciously chosen space in order to create a multimedia reality.

He is known for his work revolving around socio-cultural and socio-political concerns, in which he depicts the collapse of human sensitivities in the face of violence, turbulence, hypocrisy, alienation, dehumanization, war and death. According to the art historian Raffael Dedo Gadebusch in The Museum's Journal, Berlin, "...a rather thoughtfull laconic picture of the social reality emerges from Manna's compositions...".

By using existing icons and symbols of tradition and culture as a reference point, he creates visuals, which acquire a deeper meaning in the mind of the viewer, leading to a multitude of interpretations. His interest does not lie in creating pretty visuals but to transport the viewers from the image into their own perceived, imagined and lived experiences by inviting them to respond to these.

Diwan has pushed the boundaries of photography by developing a technique of combining painting, acting, and photography to narrate his personal impressions and experiences of the world in and around him. He creates a three-dimensional immersive environment in which there is a painting in the backdrop, actors whose bodies are painted and props This temporary installation of various elements is photographed on a transparency film which is further exposed in the darkroom on a normal photographic paper by controlling the rendition of images with the play of filters. His conceptual artworks began with the series Alienation in 1980 and continued with the series Violence, Waking the Dead, Shores of the Unknown, After the Turmoil, Master of Light-Le Corbusier over the next three decades. Through his works, Manna tries to express his concerns about the working class and the social inequality in Indian society. Corridors of Power (2006); symbolic dimension of the administrative buildings in the Chandigarh Capitol Complex.

Exhibitions Individual

His individual exhibitions include: 2006: Ages of Separation curated by Alka Pande at India Habitat Centre 2016: Le Corbusier - Mastering the Image in India, in collaboration with Museum of Fine Arts, La-Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, and Fondation Le Corbusier, France, at NGMA, Bangalore, at Embassy of Switzerland in Nov 2015 and at Govt. Museum & Art Gallery, Chandigarh, October 2015, curated by Sphie Vantieghem 2011: Articulate 2011 - An Exhibition of Contemporary photography- Saffron Art and Pratham, UK, Bond Street, London, UK 2011: 150 Years of Income Tax in India- Lalit Kala Akademi Galleries, New Delhi, Chandigarh, Lucknow, and Jaipur. 2009: The Wonder that is India- A Visual Map, group exhibition of 8 Photographers, curated by Alka Pande, collateral event India Art Summit, Instituto Cervantes Nueva, Delhi. 2008: Click! Contemporary Photography in India, curated by Suneil Gupta and Radhika Singh, at Vadehra Art Gallery in collaboration with Photomedia, New Delhi, India and Grosvenor Gallery, London 2007–2008: Regards Croises Franco - Indien (Indo - French Glances) Firminy-Chandigarh, Le Corbusier, by Diwan Manna and Michel Dieudonne, curated by Martine Dancer, at Alliance Francaise de Chandigarh, Apparao Gallery Chennai, Gallery Romaine Rolland, Alliance Francaise de Delhi, April, Alliance Francaise Trivandrum, Alliance Francaise Kolkata, Alliance Francaise, Bangalore 2007: Brasilia-Chandigarh-Le Havre, Portraits de Villes, Musee Malraux, curated by Annette Haudiquet, Le Havre, France 2006–2007: Regards Croises Franco - Indien (Indo - French Glances) Firminy-Chandigarh, Le Corbusier, by Diwan Manna and Michel Dieudonne, curated by Martine Dancer at Unite de la Habitation, Firminy, St-Etienne, France 2006–2007: Lille 2007, Le Corbusier a Chandigarh 1951–2006, by Diwan Manna, Stephane Couturier, and Lucien Harve, curated by Yannick Courbes, Musee des Beaux-Arts, Tourcoing, Lille, France 2005: Decisive Moment, New Delhi, India 2004: Singular Identities, curated by Alka Pande, at India Habitat Center 2000: Group show of five artists at Alliance Francaise, Chandigarh, India 1997: Five Artists from Punjab, Galleries of English Bridge Workshop, Abbey Foregate, Shrewsbury, UK 1997: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow, Government Museum and Art Gallery, Chandigarh, India 1996: 3rd All India Photography Exhibition, All India Fine Arts and Crafts Society, New Delhi and Chandigarh, India 1996: National Exhibition of Photography, Lalit Kala Akademi, Delhi, India 1995: 2nd All India Photography Exhibition, All India Fine Arts and Crafts Society, New Delhi and Chandigarh, India 1995: Project Punjab at National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi, Mumbai, Chandigarh, India and UK 1993: South Asian Visual Arts Festival, Wolverhampton Art Gallery, UK 1988: International Exhibition of Graphic Art & Photography, All India Fine Arts and Crafts Society, New Delhi, India 1982: National Exhibition of Art, Lalit Kala Akademi, Delhi, India