PUNE: Renowned Pune-based artist Ramesh Vitthal Thorat has been honoured with the prestigious Lalit Kala Akademi Award at the 65th National Exhibition of Art held in New Delhi under the aegis of the Ministry of Culture, Government of India.

The Lalit Kala Akademi Award is regarded as one of the most prestigious honours in the field of contemporary visual art in India.

A total of 6,175 artworks by 2,495 artists from across the country were received for the 65th National Exhibition of Art. Of these, 270 artworks were selected for exhibition, while 20 artworks were subsequently chosen for the national awards.

Each award carries a cash prize of ₹2 lakh, a memento, a certificate and an angavastram. Union Minister for Culture Gajendra Singh Shekhawat was present as the chief guest at the award ceremony.

Thorat has received several awards earlier as well, and his paintings have been exhibited at various exhibitions in India and abroad. His artworks have also been acquired for private and institutional collections.

A Journey of Artistic and Spiritual Exploration

Thorat’s artistic practice is the outcome of years of dedicated exploration and sustained artistic discipline. His paintings are distinguished by the textures of earth and sunlight, symbols of devotion, mysterious thought processes and recurring spiritual elements.

Through the patient layering of colours and ideas, Thorat creates a deeply spiritual visual experience. His works gradually attain a natural sense of completeness, inviting viewers into a mysterious and contemplative world of imagery.

Rather than prescribing a single interpretation, the artist gives viewers the freedom to discover their own intellectual and emotional meanings within his works. Significantly, his paintings do not carry titles, allowing each viewer to experience and interpret them independently.

His works evoke a strong sense of energy through their central forms, seeds, inner consciousness, characters and rich textures. They do not focus on conventional narratives or realistic subjects; instead, they explore emotional and spiritual transformations taking place within the human mind.

It is from this spiritual seed that the artist’s creative imagination grows like a Kalpavriksha the mythical wish-fulfilling tree.

Thorat’s sincere engagement with traditional artistic discipline and his sustained creative practice offer a profound experience not only to the artist himself but also to art lovers who engage with his work.