The Government College of Fine Arts (initially known as the Madras School of Art) in

Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...

is the oldest art institution in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. The institution was established in 1850 by surgeon Alexander Hunter as a private art school. In 1852, after being taken over by the government, it was renamed as the Government School of Industrial Arts. In 1962, it was renamed as the Government School of Arts and Crafts and the Government College of Arts and Crafts, before finally being renamed as present.

History

During British rule in India, the crown found that

Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...

had many talented and artistic minds. As the British had also established a settlement in and around Madras, George Town was chosen to establish an institute that would cater to the artistic expectations of the royals in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. At first traditional artists were employed to produce furniture, metalwork, and curios, and their work was sent to the royal palaces of the Queen. The institute established itself as the first school of art in India, predating the

University of Madras The University of Madras is a public university, public State university (India), state university in Chennai (Madras), Tamil Nadu, India. Established in 1857, it is one of the oldest and most prominent universities in India, incorporated by an ...

. The school was located at Popham's Broadway. In 1852, it was shifted to its present premises, a four-acre campus on Poonamallee High Road. In 1928, Debi Prasad Roy Chowdhury joined as its vice-principal and in 1929, he became its first Indian principal. He was the principal until 1957. He was succeeded by K.C.S. Paniker. Later, a number of noted artists held the role of principal, including R. Krishna Rao, S. Dhanapal, K. L. Munuswamy, A. P. Santhanaraj and C. J. Anthony Doss. In 1966, former principal K.C.S. Paniker, along with his students and some artists associated with the college, founded the Cholamandal Artists' Village, near

, which is still considered one of the '10 biggest art moments' in India. Govt Fine Arts College Madras

Courses offered

Government College of fine arts, Chennai - offers Bachelor and Master degrees ith Faculty of Engineering, University of Chennaiin fine arts, Courses Offered in Visual communication, Painting, Sculpture, Textile Design, Ceramics and Print Making raphic arts

Notable alumni

* Debi Prasad Roy Chowdhury (sculpture) * K. C. S. Paniker * A.P.Santhanaraj (Principal) * K.M. Adimoolam (drawing and painting) * T. Viswanathan (Vice Principal) (Painting and Visual Communication) * Alphonso A.Doss (Principle) (Painting) * Kanayi Kunjiraman (sculpture) * Namboothiri (painting and sculpture) * Paris Viswanathan (painting and filmmaking) * T. K. Padmini (painting) * Trotsky Marudu (drawing and painting) * Ebenezer Sunder Singh (painting and sculpture) *

Sivakumar Palaniswamy Gounder (born 27 October 1941), better known by his stage name Sivakumar, is an Indian visual artist and former actor who has appeared in Tamil cinema and television. He made his acting debut in '' Kaakum Karangal'' (1965) and has ...

(drawing, painting, and acting) * Syed Thajudeen (figurative artist) *

D. R. K. Kiran D. R. K. Kiran is an Indian actor and art director who works primarily in Tamil Cinema. He started his career as an asst. art director during the early 1990s, and worked in films like Seeman (film), Seeman, Kuruthipunal (film), Kuruthipunal, Ne ...

(art director, actor) * Manobala (director) Saran (director) * Pa. Ranjith (director) * Ameresh Viswanathan (Industrial Design, Painting and Printmaking)

References

External links

The British Library image
at ''The Hindu''
Artist R.Krishna Rao
Official website {{authority control Art schools in India Educational institutions established in 1850 Arts and Science colleges in Chennai Arts organizations established in 1850 Heritage sites in Chennai Academic institutions formerly affiliated with the University of Madras