Shyamal Dutta Roy Shyamal Dutta Roy was born in Ranchi, Bihar in 1934. He graduated from the
Government College of Art and Craft in 1955. Dutta Roy worked as art teacher at
Jagadbhandu Institution in Calcutta. He was a founder member of the Society of
Contemporary Artists.
Dutta Roy's forte was the reinvention of water colour as a medium. After
the wishy-washy use of the medium by the earlier generation of followers of the Bengal
School, his water colors introduced a new depth and intensity to the medium. His works
convey a melancholy mood. Whether it is the passing away of gracious lifestyle in Calcutta
or the stark contrast between the very rich and the very poor, Dutta Roy captures in his
images a pensive comment on life. Broken walls, crumbling plaster, cobweb-filled rooms,
empty houses where gardens have become wilderness record a transient world.
Shyamal Dutta Roy lives and works in Calcutta.
