Raza Foundation
Sayed Haider RAZA is widely acknowledged as one of the masters of modern Indian art. He had humble beginning in small towns of Madhya Pradesh and he received his training in art at Nagpur and Bombay.
After winning a French Govt scholarship he moved on to Paris to pursue further studies in art in 1950. Since then he has been staying in France, both in Paris and Gorbio (South of France) where he set up his home and studios.
Raza never forgot the hard days and struggle he had to put up with when he was young. In 2001 he decided to set up a Foundation, which was named the Raza Foundation in spite of his reluctance upon insistence of his friends. The Foundation is aimed at promoting, supporting and honouring young artists from visual, performing and literary fields. It has been exclusively funded by Raza from his own income. This is a singular example when a major artist in India has invested a substantial part of his income towards promotion of the arts among younger generations. The nobility and the generosity of this move have not gone unnoticed and have won Raza wide respect and admiration within the larger creative community.
Besides giving awards of Rs. 1 lakh each to 2 visual artists, 1 poet, 1 musician and 1 dancers annually, the Foundation has supported a variety of creative projects, including publication of catalogues, books, journals, multi-disciplinary art camps, seminars on music and important visual artists, critical dialogues and discussion on the arts.
After winning a French Govt scholarship he moved on to Paris to pursue further studies in art in 1950. Since then he has been staying in France, both in Paris and Gorbio (South of France) where he set up his home and studios.
Raza never forgot the hard days and struggle he had to put up with when he was young. In 2001 he decided to set up a Foundation, which was named the Raza Foundation in spite of his reluctance upon insistence of his friends. The Foundation is aimed at promoting, supporting and honouring young artists from visual, performing and literary fields. It has been exclusively funded by Raza from his own income. This is a singular example when a major artist in India has invested a substantial part of his income towards promotion of the arts among younger generations. The nobility and the generosity of this move have not gone unnoticed and have won Raza wide respect and admiration within the larger creative community.
Besides giving awards of Rs. 1 lakh each to 2 visual artists, 1 poet, 1 musician and 1 dancers annually, the Foundation has supported a variety of creative projects, including publication of catalogues, books, journals, multi-disciplinary art camps, seminars on music and important visual artists, critical dialogues and discussion on the arts.