Prabhakar Kolte

 

Artist Ramesh Kher, Dr. Ved Prakash Bhardwaj and Jay Prakash Chouhan with Prabhakar Kolte in his Mumbai Studio in 2014. Photo by Rajesh Eknath

For nearly six decades, Prabhakar Kolte has remained a tireless seeker in the field of abstract art. His practice resembles a long, solitary meditation — a continuous sādhanā through which he bridges the distance between the inner and the outer world. For him, painting is not merely about forms and colours, but a process of probing into existence itself, of allowing silence and mystery to emerge on the surface of the canvas.

Kolte’s artistic universe is at once deeply introspective and profoundly connected to literature, poetry, and music. He writes and speaks extensively on art, yet when it comes to his own work, he often allows silence to prevail. His paintings themselves embody this silence — they say something, and then deliberately pause, concealing more than they reveal.

On his canvases, large areas are often veiled in a single, dense layer of colour — sometimes two or three overlapping layers. In this process, he leaves certain portions uncovered, allowing the underlying colours to peep through. It is here that the play between the visible and the invisible begins. What is revealed is never the whole; what is concealed is equally part of the experience.

Kolte once remarked: “I do not paint by looking, I look by painting.” This statement is the key to his artistic philosophy. For him, creation precedes comprehension. In this act of “painting in order to see,” the visible becomes invisible, and the invisible becomes visible. This is why his canvases often resemble poetry — much like a poet who uses few words to evoke multiple meanings, Kolte’s restrained surfaces generate infinite possibilities of interpretation.

His art is an exercise in restraint and balance. He understands that revealing everything at once can obstruct the act of seeing. Instead, he invites the viewer to complete the work through their own perception and imagination. His canvases thus become mirrors of the self, as much as they are expressions of the artist.

Kolte’s personality combines gravity with warmth. While deeply committed to his art, he is also known for his gentle humour. At exhibitions, when asked, “What have you painted here? I don’t understand,” he would often reply with a smile: “Even I don’t understand it.” Among friends, he recalls old stories, hums tunes, and speaks of art with equal parts seriousness and playfulness.

His vision has always been interdisciplinary. He once dreamt of founding a school where all forms of art could be taught alongside other subjects. To him, painting is inseparable from music, theatre, and literature — and this interconnection resonates in his work. His canvases often echo with musical rhythms, dramatic intensity, and poetic resonance. He once described his own paintings as “silent poems.”

Dr. Ved Prakash Bhardwaj and Anoop Kumar Chand with Prabhakar Kolte in New Delhi 

Indeed, Kolte’s paintings resist a single image or interpretation. They awaken multiple possibilities, leaving space for the viewer’s imagination to participate. The spectator is not a passive observer but becomes a co-creator, completing the work through personal reflection and experience.

Today, after nearly six decades of unbroken dedication, Prabhakar Kolte stands as a vital pillar of modern Indian abstraction. His works are not mere explorations of form and color, but profound inquiries into the unseen depths of human experience. They remind us that art is not only about looking outward but also about turning inward, into silence, into mystery, into possibility.

Kolte’s canvases do not offer direct answers; instead, they leave us with questions. These questions open up new ways of seeing, new ways of feeling, and new ways of being. His art teaches us that behind every visible surface lies an invisible truth — and it is in seeking that truth that the act of seeing truly begins.