Sohan Qadri (1932-2011) was born in Chachoki, Punjab in British India. Early on, he pursued his art by apprenticing himself to a photographer in a studio in Jullandhar, Punjab. Qadri subsequently moved to Bombay where he worked briefly as a stills-photographer at a film studio, before applying to study at the Simla College of Art. Having been inducted into Tantric practice at a young age, Qadri's oeuvre was marked very early on by a departure from representation towards abstract symbolism. His first exhibition was held at the Gandhi Bhavan, the Punjab University Library art gallery; only the second to be held at the newly-opened venue, the first being an exhibition by M. F. Hussain. Qadri had his second exhibition at the Sridharani Art Gallery in Delhi. He left India in 1965, and after prolific travels across East Africa, North America, Paris and Zurich, Qadri finally settled in Copenhagen as his permanent base. Over the course of his career, he participated in more than forty one-man shows, in Bombay, Paris, Vienna, London, Oslo and Montreal among others. In addition, he remained a lifelong practitioner of Tantric meditation running a Yoga centre in Copenhagen. Qadri passed away in 2011.

ESSAYS

Sohan Qadri - Meditative Silence

by S I Clerk

Published in Roopa Lekha, VoL 55, 1984, p. 69-73

There are a number of artists in our midst who are involved with Tantric art. Sohan Qadri’s involvement is deeply intense. In his life, art and religion are closely interlinked into a significant unison. He teaches, preaches and practices Yoga

Sohan Qadri

Sohan Qadri - Meditative Silence

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