25 Facts About Shiavax Chavda

Shiavax Dhanjibhoy Chavda was an Indian painter, illustrator and muralist.

Shiavax Chavda was born in a middle class Parsi family on 18 June 1914 in Navsari, Gujarat.

Shiavax Chavda's father Dhanjibhoy was a trader and his mother's name was Hillamai.

Shiavax Chavda completed his school education in Navsari and joined the Sir JJ School of Art in Mumbai.

Shiavax Chavda was briefly associated with the Bombay Progressive Artists' Group and worked as an art director with a well-known film unit.

Shiavax Chavda used to visit the zoo and sketch various animals, their movements and postures.

Shiavax Chavda made many sketches and colorful pictures of cock as a subject.

Shiavax Chavda was fascinated by the dynamic movements of individuals and groups of people engaged in their chores, dancers in various forms, and musicians showcasing their style and rhythm.

Shiavax Chavda usually painted on canvas in impasto style, applying the paint with a painting knife.

The characteristic of Shiavax Chavda's artworks were the rhythmic lines, which he used to capture the motion and movements in the picture by sketching them quickly.

Gradually, Shiavax Chavda started to portray his subjects in an abstract style using the same colours and textures that were applied in his early artworks.

Shiavax Chavda created colorful drawings and sketches based on Indian dance forms such as Bharatanatyam and Odissi as well as ballet dance forms of Europe.

Shiavax Chavda used yantra from Tantric art as images or symbols in his artworks.

In 1949, Henry Heras had requested Shiavax Chavda to create paintings on Christ-theme.

Shiavax Chavda did not confine himself to Western modernistic techniques but drew valuable lessons from the traditions of old Indian sculptures, which was demonstrated in his studies of the sculptures of Ambarnath.

Shiavax Chavda suspected that Chavda secretly prayed at the shrine of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.

Notable paintings of Shiavax Chavda include Calico Printers, Mother's love, Worship in Kulu, Rangoli, Toddy Sellers, Daily Work, Booking Office and In the Balcony among others.

Shiavax Chavda had created murals for the Mumbai offices of Air India, Burmah Oil, Reliance Group and the buildings of People's Insurance Company, National Centre for the Performing Arts.

Shiavax Chavda painted commissioned portraits for various government and private organizations.

Shiavax Chavda was invited by the Assam government to portray the diversity of tribal life in Assam.

Shiavax Chavda was among the thirteen artists from India who had exhibited in the Indian section of this event.

Shiavax Chavda was elected as the Fellow of Lalit Kala Akademi in 1986.

Shiavax Chavda was adjudged as the 'Artist of the Year' by the Government of Maharashtra in 1990.

In 1947, Shiavax Chavda married Khurshid Vajifdar, an expert in Indian classical dance and sister of Shirin Vajifdar.

Shiavax Chavda died on 18 August 1990 in Mumbai at the age of 75.