Vamona Ananta Sinai Navelcar (5 May 1930 – 18 October 2021) was an artist from

Goa Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is located between the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the ...

, India, who had studied and worked in Portugal, Mozambique, and Goa. Navelcar was born in Pomburpa village. Navelcar began his art career in Mozambique, after training in Portugal, where he also lived for some time. He excelled in Christian figurative art. He adopted the name of "Ganesh", after an incident that caused him to be "reborn" (

Lord Ganesh Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu d ...

is associated with new beginnings) and in memory of his brother Ganesh. Navelcar had been called "a state treasure of Goa, whose remarkable oeuvre spans several decades." He had twice received the

Gulbenkian Foundation The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation ( pt, Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian), commonly referred to simply as the Gulbenkian Foundation, is a Portuguese institution dedicated to the promotion of the arts, philanthropy, science, and education. One of ...

Fellowships (1963 and 1971) and he won an international award at the International Exhibition of Art in

Monte Carlo Monte Carlo (; ; french: Monte-Carlo , or colloquially ''Monte-Carl'' ; lij, Munte Carlu ; ) is officially an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco, specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is ...

for his ink drawing, ''Angoch Woman''. He is considered a "prolific master of line" with a specialisation in murals and bas-relief composed of metallic, wooden and glass structures and his works form part of private and museum collections worldwide.

Life and career

Early life (1930–1954)

Navelcar was born on 5 May 1930 in the village of Pomburpa,

Bardez ''Bardez'' ( kok, Bardes; pt, Bardes; IPA: ) is a ''taluka'' of the North Goa district in the Indian state of Goa. It was a ''concelho'' in the Portuguese State of India before 1961. Etymology The name is credited to the Saraswat Br ...

. He grew up by drawing and hiding his work from his family, who disapproved of it. Navelcar joined

Bombay University The University of Mumbai is a collegiate, state-owned, public research university in Mumbai. The University of Mumbai is one of the largest universities in the world. , the university had 711 affiliated colleges. Ratan Tata is the appointed ...

in 1950 and was admitted to the Wardha University to study Hindustani (

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...

) and

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

Returning to Goa, he secured a job with the Chowgule Company as an accountant and continued to produce his art work in his spare time, which was noticed and admired by his colleagues. After being asked by Mr Chowgule, the owner of the company, to do some portraits of dignitaries of the time, including Paulo Bénard Guedes, who was the

Governor-General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

Portuguese India The State of India ( pt, Estado da Índia), also referred as the Portuguese State of India (''Estado Português da Índia'', EPI) or simply Portuguese India (), was a state of the Portuguese Empire founded six years after the discovery of a se ...

in 1953, his work was noticed. Guedes asked him to draw a portrait of Dr

António de Oliveira Salazar António de Oliveira Salazar (, , ; 28 April 1889 – 27 July 1970) was a Portuguese dictator who served as President of the Council of Ministers from 1932 to 1968. Having come to power under the ("National Dictatorship"), he reframed the re ...

, the then

Prime Minister of Portugal The prime minister of Portugal ( pt, primeiro-ministro; ) is the head of government of Portugal. As head of government, the prime minister coordinates the actions of ministers, represents the Government of Portugal to the other bodies of state, ...

, and subsequently awarded him a scholarship to study art in Portugal.

Portugal (1954–1963)

In 1954 Vamona Navelcar set off to Portugal to study, but before he could apply to the

Escola de Belas Artes Escola de Belas Artes (School of Fine Arts) is one of the centers of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and dates back to colonial times. A royal letter of Nov 20 1800 by John VI of Portugal established the ''Aula Prática de Desenho e Fig ...

, he first had to study Portuguese as well as other subjects at a secondary level to bring him to the level required for acceptance. The courses and subjects set for him would normally have taken 4 years to complete, but he did them in one year, a phenomenal achievement indeed. In 1955, at the age of 25 he applied to the Escola Superior de Belas Artes and was accepted without reservation. His studies went well but he faced many difficulties, particularly in the early days with the written and spoken Portuguese language. His relationship with his teachers and their assistants was also not good as they seemed to resent his talent and knowledge, though the professors and directors of the institution liked and admired his work. In December 1961, Goa was annexed by India. The political changes at that time caused great difficulty for Navelcar as he lost his grant to study just six months before he was due to graduate because he would not sign a document denouncing

Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...

Liberation of Goa The Annexation of Goa was the process in which the Republic of India annexed ', the then Portuguese Indian territories of Goa, Daman and Diu, starting with the armed action carried out by the Indian Armed Forces in December 1961. In India, ...

. However, with the help of one of his professors he was given a grant by the

in 1963, which allowed him to complete his studies. In 1962 he graduated from the Escola Superior de Belas Artes with a thesis painting titled ''A Rotina'' and a year later completed his postgraduate painting titled, ''Ramayana''. This was an oil interpretation of the ''

Ramayana The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...

'', which featured

Rama Rama (; ), Ram, Raman or Ramar, also known as Ramachandra (; , ), is a major deity in Hinduism. He is the seventh and one of the most popular '' avatars'' of Vishnu. In Rama-centric traditions of Hinduism, he is considered the Supreme Bein ...

and

Hanuman Hanuman (; sa, हनुमान, ), also called Anjaneya (), is a Hindu god and a divine '' vanara'' companion of the god Rama. Hanuman is one of the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is an ardent devotee of Rama and on ...

on either side of

Sita Sita (; ) also called as Janaki and Vaidehi is a Hindu goddess and the female protagonist of the Hindu epic, ''Ramayana''. She is the consort of Rama, the avatar of the god Vishnu, and is regarded as a form of Vishnu's consort, Lakshmi. She ...

. After graduation, Navelcar tried to get a teaching position in Portugal but everywhere he applied he was rejected.

Mozambique (1963–1976)

Navelcar soon became desperate and applied to the overseas department and managed to secure a position in Mozambique. In 1963 he set off to Africa, believing he had a position at the technical college in Mozambique's capital Lourenco Marques (now named

Maputo Maputo (), formerly named Lourenço Marques until 1976, is the Capital city, capital, and largest city of Mozambique. Located near the southern end of the country, it is within of the borders with Eswatini and South Africa. The city has a popul ...

). However, on his arrival, the overseas director, Dr Oliveira Boléo told Navelcar that he would be posted to the technical school in

Quelimane Quelimane () is a seaport in Mozambique. It is the administrative capital of the Zambezia Province and the province's largest city, and stands from the mouth of the Rio dos Bons Sinais (or "River of the Good Signs"). The river was named when V ...

. So, this is where he started teaching as a professor of geometry and mathematics in

Lyceums The lyceum is a category of educational institution defined within the education system of many countries, mainly in Europe. The definition varies among countries; usually it is a type of secondary school. Generally in that type of school the th ...

, first in Quelimane for one year and then onto

Nampula Nampula is the capital city of Nampula Province in Northern Mozambique. With a population of 743,125 (2017 census), it is the third-largest city in Mozambique after Maputo and Matola. The city is located in the interior of Nampula Province, approxi ...

, being in Mozambique for thirteen years in total. However, at every step of the way he followed his passion for the arts, teaching those students who were interested in art the different techniques and processes, as well as expanding his own talent, evolving as an artist of the world and one to be reckoned with. Navelcar had a good life there, having a manservant named Sheriff who he trusted and became extremely fond of as a person. Once again Navelcar taught geometry as a main subject and art as a secondary subject. He was loved by all the students for his gentle and kind manner as well as his talent in teaching. However, when he asked his director for a room for a studio that he could use, he was told there was none spare. Some weeks later Navelcar asked to use one of the toilets that was not used and on this occasion, having no excuses he could think of, the director agreed. This studio was one of the places that Navelcar loved to be to do his creative work in peace and quiet. He described how Francis Baker, too, would display his work in a toilet. During this period, he produced many paintings, drawings and murals, including the ''Angoch Woman'' (fisher woman). Time went by with many rewards and achievements in his art, expanding his talent and trying out new techniques including

collages Collage (, from the french: coller, "to glue" or "to stick together";) is a technique of art creation, primarily used in the visual arts, but in music too, by which art results from an Assemblage (art), assemblage of different forms, thus creat ...

ceramics A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...

sculptures Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

in metal, wood and other materials. He made many murals and large paintings as well as portraits of dignitaries throughout his time in Africa. He supported the local African people and became very fond of their company and their talents as well as all his students at college, never displaying any discrimination.

Imprisonment (1975–1976)

As Mozambique fought for its independence through the

FRELIMO FRELIMO (; from the Portuguese , ) is a democratic socialist political party in Mozambique. It is the dominant party in Mozambique and has won a majority of the seats in the Assembly of the Republic in every election since the country's first ...

(Front for the Liberation of Mozambique) movement, Navelcar supported the freedom fighters of Mozambique, often doing murals or helping his students to prepare posters, but never doing it openly or signing his work for fear of being punished by the Portuguese authorities. Navelcar supported freedom of the people to rule themselves, with no external interference from other countries as well as freedom of speech in which ever medium one chooses. On 25 April 1974 there was a military coup in Portugal called the

Carnation Revolution The Carnation Revolution ( pt, Revolução dos Cravos), also known as the 25 April ( pt, 25 de Abril, links=no), was a military coup by left-leaning military officers that overthrew the authoritarian Estado Novo regime on 25 April 1974 in Lisbo ...

, coupled with much civil unrest which toppled the dictatorial Estado Novo regime. Consequently, by 25 June 1975, the FRELIMO took over governance of Mozambique. Navelcar celebrated with the African communities. At the end of the term the students held a party to celebrate. However, this displeased the new strict

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

FRELIMO regime, who arrested all those who attended the party (including Navelcar) on 3 November 1975. They were taken to Imala, a prison camp in the forest some 90 kilometres from Nampula. They were all held here for eighty one days until they were released on 23 January 1976 after the intervention of Armando Panguene, the newly appointed Provincial Governor in Nampula. During their stay in the prison camp they were subjected to hard labour, digging in the fields and in the cashew plantations, collecting the cashew nuts and apples. Many a time Navelcar refused to go to the fields and devised ways of helping his students by suggesting that they paint and make murals on the walls to revere and help the FRELIMO movement. The commander of the camp agreed in most cases to Navelcar's requests, so in that manner he was able to help his students, particularly the girls, to avoid the hard physical work in the fields. This helped keep up the spirits of both he and his students. Navelcar and his students were released in January 1976 with a convoy of police and parents arriving to bring them all safely back to Nampula.

Return to Portugal (1976–1982)

During his imprisonment, Navelcar had contracted a severe

ear infection Otitis is a general term for inflammation or infection, inner ear infection, middle ear infection of the ear, in both humans and other animals. When infection is present, it may be viral or bacterial. When inflammation is present due to fluid buil ...

, so on his return, he immediately sought medical help. By then most of the Portuguese had left Mozambique so it was difficult to find a qualified doctor. However, there was a Polish doctor still at the government hospital who told him that he should return to Portugal as soon as possible as there were no suitable medicines in the country. Immediately Navelcar made plans to return to Portugal, destroying all his teaching material and books. He packed two suit cases, one with clothes and the other with his work, trophies and certificates. Within eight days he was ready to leave and set off to Portugal, assisted by his trusted servant Sheriff, who was also distraught at Navelcar's decision to leave Africa. The flight took a long time as the route was tortuous, needing to stop only at places where it was safe to do so. On arrival in Portugal one bag was missing, the one with all his important documents and art work in it. Desperate to find it he tried all manner of contacts but all failed to find the missing case. Distraught by this event, Navelcar sat down and did a drawing signing it "Ganesh," vowing at that time never to sign, “Vamona Navelcar” again. (Further, this indicated his rebirth, and was a tribute to his elder brother Ganesh, who mentored Vamona but died at the age of 15 when Vamona was 6 years old.) Navelcar managed to secure a pension from the Government of 60% of his last salary form Mozambique, but with escalating prices and turmoil, times were very hard indeed. Eventually, after seven years back in Portugal with no prospect of work or people having spare money for the luxuries of purchasing paintings, Navelcar decided to return to Goa. Quickly forming a plan to leave Portugal, telling no one, even his closest friends until the last moment, he packed his few possessions and his work, booked the flights and asked his dear friend Dr Alexandre Ribeirinho to take him to the airport. So, on 6 October 1982, Vamona Navelcar set off back to his homeland of Goa.

Return to Goa (1976–2021)

Navelcar returned to Goa to feel "lost and ignored" by the public and even by his own family. He claimed to have returned to try to find peace of mind and tranquility for his soul but added that he has found none. His work is mostly abstract, and he was influenced heavily by European artists. He also admired the work of Goan artists like

F. N. Souza Francis Newton Souza (12 April 1924 – 28 March 2002) was an Indian-American British Asian artist. He was a founding member of the Progressive Artists' Group of Bombay. Souza's style exhibited both decadence and primitivism. Early life and e ...

and

Vasudeo S. Gaitonde Vasudeo S. Gaitonde (1924 – 10 August 2001), also known as V. S. Gaitonde, was regarded as one of India's foremost abstract painters. He received the Padma Shri by the Government of India in 1971. Early life and education Gaitonde was born ...

. In 2017, Casa de Goa, a centre for cultural activities which has promoted ties between Goa and Portugal for about 30 years, celebrated their 50th anniversary. As part of the celebrations, the Prime Minister of Portugal,

António Costa António Luís Santos da Costa GCIH (; born 17 July 1961) is a Portuguese lawyer and politician serving as the 119th and current prime minister of Portugal since 26 November 2015, presiding over the XXI (2015–2019), XXII (2019–2022) and ...

was presented with a portrait of Portuguese poet

Fernando Pessoa Fernando António Nogueira Pessoa (; 13 June 1888 – 30 November 1935) was a Portuguese poet, writer, literary critic, translator, publisher, and philosopher, described as one of the most significant literary figures of the 20th century and ...

, painted by Navelcar. Costa's father,

Orlando da Costa Orlando António Fernandes da Costa (July 1929, Maputo − 27 January 2006) was a Portuguese writer of Goan paternal and Mozambican- French maternal descent whose writings express his experiences of life in Goa. According to Everton Machado, ...

, had once visited Navelcar's Pomburpa home and Navelcar had drawn a portrait of him.

Death

Navelcar died on 18 October 2021 at the age of 91 at a hospital in

Panaji Panaji (; also known as Panjim) is the capital of the Indian state of Goa and the headquarters of North Goa district. Previously, it was the territorial capital of the former Portuguese India. It lies on the banks of the Mandovi river estuary ...

Artistry

Artist Vamona Navelcar and others at the launch of an art event in Goa

Describing his work in 2012, ''

The Times of India ''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the third-largest newspaper in India by circulation and largest ...

'' commented: "The ethic extends to the great Vamona Navelcar. Known for his elegant line, for epitomizing gentility, the seniormost contributor has rendered a grotesque skull-bedecked ''Ogre'', a painting that immediately recalls

Angelo da Fonseca Angelo da Fonseca (–) was a 20th-century Indian painter. Early life Angelo da Fonseca was born in St Estevam, Santo Estêvão, Goa in 1902 to a wealthy Goan Catholic family. He studied under Abanindranath Tagore in Kolkata, Calcutta. Fon ...

's ''Apocalypse'' (a likewise searing vision painted after a lifetime of making serene images)." Dr Carmo Gracias from Margao, who owns more than 20 of Navelcar's paintings along with dozens of others by other Goan and Indian artists, describes how Navelcar can quickly create a rendition of

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

. He claims that Navelcar is exquisite in his style of line drawing, in which he draws an image in a single continuous stroke while not lifting his pencil or pen. Goan artist Bina Nayak has been quoted as having said that Navelcar is "the M.F. Hussain of Goa," likening him to the famed Indian artist.

Exhibitions

Navelcar's first exhibition was in the early 1960s at the Palacio Foz in

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

. As part of Semana da Cultura (a celebration of Indo-Portuguese cultural fusion) in 2011, Navelcar's work was displayed at the

Sunaparanta, Goa Centre for the Arts Sunaparanta, Goa Centre for the Arts is a cultural centre in Altinho, Panjim, Goa. Its official website describes it as a "non-profit, process-based initiative to encourage creation, learning, understanding, appreciation and enjoyment of the vis ...

in an exhibition titled "In dreams the work is born". The exhibition ran from 22 to 31 October 2011. From 23 June to 9 September 2012, Navelcar exhibited his work at the Figueiro de Vinhos gallery, in the centre of Portugal. A Retrospective exhibition was held in Portugal from June to October 2012 curated by Vamona's long standing friend and admirer, Professor Antonino Martins Mendes. On 1 May 2017, an exhibition celebrating his life and work called "The Great Goan Art Festival" was organized by Marius Fernandes at Campal in

. His works were displayed from 12 December 2017 to 12 January 2018 at the Fundacao Oriente, Panjim, in an exhibition titled ''Goa/Portugal/Mozambique: The Many Lives of Vamona Navelcar'', featuring 16 of his works. The exhibition is co-hosted by the Al-Zulaij Collective, and an accompanying book was released, with the same title as the exhibition.

Biographical works

As of January 2013, retired aeronautical engineer and UK

expat An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who resides outside their native country. In common usage, the term often refers to educated professionals, skilled workers, or artists taking positions outside their home country, either ...

Anne Ketteringham has completed her book in conjunction with VS Arts, to be published on the life and work of Vamona Navelcar. The book is called ''Vamona Navelcar, An Artist of Three Continents'' and was launched in Goa at Gallery Gitanjali, Panaji on 12 April 2013 with an exhibition of Vamona Navelcar's works over the decades. The book is now available at Village Sanctuary, Panaji, India. Navelcar is the subject of a 2019 documentary on his life titled ''I am nothing'' with Ronak Kamat directing it and sound editing by Ashley Fernandes.

References

External links

* * by

Frederick Noronha Frederick Noronha (born 23 December 1963) in São Paulo, Brazil is a journalist based in Saligão in the Bardez taluka of Goa. He is active in cyberspace and involved with e-ventures involving Goa, developmental concerns and free software. No ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Navelcar, Vamona 1930 births 2021 deaths Indian male painters 20th-century Indian painters People from North Goa district 20th-century Indian male artists