“I first saw Rama Rao’s work in 1967 in London. It was a drawing reproduced in the highbrow London Magazine. Alan Ross, the Editor, covering the caption with his handkerchief, asked me to identify the artist. … my response was immediate: “Picasso.’ ‘No, Wrong’ said Ross. ‘He is from your country, Rama Rao.’” — A.S. Raman, Editor, Illustrated Weekly of India

“Rao, more than any other contemporary artist I know, achieves a perfect balance between East and West.” — Max Sykes - Joyce, Art Critic - London, UK and Paris, France

COLLECTIONS

Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England
National Gallery of New Zealand, Wellington, New Zealand
Seattle Museum of Art, Seattle, WA
Nuffield Foundation, London, UK
Linx House Foundation, Glasgow, UK
National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi, India
British Council, London, UK
Asia House, New York, NY
Mobile Art Gallery, Mobile, AL
University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH
Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University, Boston, MA
Kalamazoo Art Institute, Kalamazoo, MI
Ford Foundation, New Delhi, India
University of London, London, UK
Government of Andhra Pradesh, India
Chitralaya State Art Gallery, Trivandrum, Kerala, India
Madras Museum, Madras, India
Lalit Kala Academy, Hyderabad, India
International Cultural Centre, New Delhi, India
Salar Jung Museum, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India
… and many public and private collections throughout the world.

“padma shri” Dr. s.v. rama rao

Padma shri S.V. Rama Rao’s work, which has been compared to Picasso, Klee and Dali may be hard to grasp but one falls in love with the colors, lines and the seductive curves that reveal hidden landscapes, animals and people shaping up stealthly, surprising one with their complete whole experience. Most of his works are marked by a deeply poetic feel — not many of us know Ramo Rao is equally at ease with verses as he has numerous poetry books to his name. Born in 1936 in Andhra Pradesh, Dr. S.V. Rama Rao is an eminent artist and educationist, a poet and a writer. He is a leading exponent of the contemporary global artistic tradition and has been acclaimed for providing a bridge between the art of the East and of the West. The Times, London, in a review said of his works, “Though modern art tends to obliterate or obscure the differences between nationalities, so distinct a culture as that of India does not really yield its powerful influence, and Rao’s work gives an instance.”

At the age of 28, all of the major papers in London hailed him as a genius. The most outstanding artist in the Commonwealth awards also known as Lord Croft Award was given for the first time to an Indian artist in a juried art exhibition in London.

Dr. Rao’s work has received wide acclaim for his ability to blend the three oriental traditions, namely the wash technique of China, the Japanese emphasis on line and the Indian style of miniature paintings and developed his own distinct style. As a tribute to his new style and technique, the western art critics deemed it fit to exhibit his works along with the great masters — Picasso, Braque, Dali, Miro, Matisse and many others at the International Alphabet of Modern Art Exhibition at New Vision Centre Gallery, London.

Dr. Rao holds a MFA in painting, a BA in Accounting and Banking, and a BA in Economics. He earned a Fine Arts degree in painting (India), and a Government diploma in Fine Arts (India). The Association of Universities of Great Britain announced a Fellowship in Painting to be awarded to only one artist living in the Commonwealth Countries, and in 1962, it was awarded to Rao. With that Fellowship he went to London and joined the Slade School of Fine Arts, University of London, to pursue research in painting where he created his unique style in abstract expressionism. Dr. Rao paints exclusively in oils.

S.V. Rama Rao is also a serious poet, writer and a published author. He lives in Chicago with his wife.

honors

On behalf of the Government of India, in the year 2001, the President of India, Dr. Narayanan honored Rama Rao with the most prestigious National Award PADMA SHRI. Padma awards are the highest civilian awards given by the Government of Indian and it is given for Rao’s individual achievements of the highest order and contributions made in his chosen field of painting. This is similar to the SIR title given by the Queen of England.

Honorary Doctorate Degree (D.Litt.), from the Potti Sree Ramulu Telugu University, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India.

Received the prestigious award, The Most Outstanding Artist in the Commonwealth in 1965 by judges from both Europe and England at the Second Commonwealth Biennial of Abstract Art Exhibition in London.

EXHIBITIONS

2013 Dhoomimal Gallery, New Delhi
2012 Indhra Prastha University, New Delhi
2008 Heike Pickett Gallery, Versailles, KY
2003 Crown Center Gallery, Loyola University, Chicago, IL
2003 Heike Pickett Gallery, Lexington , KY
2002 Heike Pickett Gallery, Versailles, KY
1999 One Man Show, Values Art Center, Chennani, India
1997 One Man Show, Andhra University, Waltair, India
1997 One Man Show, Hyderabad Art Society, Hyderabad, India
1997 One Man Show, Kakatiya University, Warangal, India
1997 One Man Show, Artist and Journalists Hall, Vijayawada, India
1974 One Man Show, Allen House Galleries, Kouisvile, KY
1971 One Man Show, Huntington Gallery, Huntington, WV
1972 IB Speed Art Museum, Louisville, Ky
1972 One Man Show, Evansville Museum of Art & Science, Evansville, IN
1972 Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, KY
1971 The Living Arts and Science Center, Lexington, KY
1970 One Man Show, Edgecliff College, Cincinnati, OH
1969 Artists’ Print Show, New York State University, Binghampton, NY
1968 Copley Art Society, Boston, MA
1968 International Print Biennial, Bradford City Museum, UK
1968 Gallery Artist Show, Leicester Galleries, London, UK
1968 EXPO 68, International Art Exhibition, Montreal, Canada
1967 Retrospective One Man Show, Commonwealth Art Institute, London, UK
1967 Royal Glasgow Institute of Fine Arts, Glasgow, UK
1967 One Man Show, Leicester Galleries, London, UK
1966 Artists from Commonwealth, Nottingham, UK
1965 International Alphabet of Modern Art, New Vision Centre Gallery, London, UK
1965 Art Treasures from Commonwealth, Royal Academy, London, UK
… and more