Born on 10th June 1972, Vadodara, city of Art & Culture. Trained as a civil engineer and self - thought artist, Brijesh Upadhyay's engagement with contemporary fine arts began with an arduous trial and error method, undertaken in what he describes as a "Lonely Studio". An honest Upadhyay does not shy away from these early, sometimes inconsistent self - taught experiments instead, these large - scale canvasses adorn the walls of his studio and home in Baroda. The warm and vibrant space invites the critic, curator and collector to view the different stages in the evolution of this artist, and assess his oeuvre critically. This space also becomes a reflection of the very nature of Indian contemporary art, which has redefined and embraced the role of the "Experimental Self - Taught Artist" whose career and works defy clear - cut categorization in terms of specific genres and schools. Upadhyay's bold display of his changing artistic trajectories and failed experiments, alongside his most successful works in the studio, hint at the presence of an underlying postmodernist ideology and method. The critic comes away with impressions of "Adventure" and "Fluidity" as hallmarks of this meaningfully evolving career simultaneously, the critic is posed with a challenge, as the many suites of works painted by the artist cannot be anchored in particular genres nor classified stylistically. Paradoxically, these characteristics position Upadhyay as an interesting, emerging contemporary art practitioner. His biography becomes an empirical framework upon which one can anchor his artistic output.

Priya Maholay - Jaradi Doctoral Candidate, South Asian Studies Programme, National University of Singapore & Member of Board, International Committee for Exhibitions (ICEE) & Exchange, International Council of Museums (ICOM), UNESCO