National Gallery Of Modern Art

The idea of a national art gallery took shape in 1938, when an artists’ organisation, the All India Fine Arts and Craft Society (AIFACS) first highlighted the need for an art institution in the cultural landscape of India.

With the dawn of India as an independent nation, it became imperative that the artistic heritage of modern India be showcased at a distinguished platform of a national level.

Subsequently at an art conference in Calcutta, organised by the Government of India in 1949, a resolution was passed for the setting up of a national art gallery.

The National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi was formally inaugurated by Vice President Dr S Radhakrishnan on March 29, 1954 under the patronage of the then Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad and bureaucrat Humayun Kabir.

The stately Jaipur House which housed the headquarters of Lalit Kala Akademi was specially selected for unveiling the masterworks of modern Indian art. The inauguration was marked by an exhibition of sculptures curated by its first director, eminent art historian Herman Goetz who had previously served as the director of Baroda Museum.

The exhibition was a huge success with the participation of prominent sculptors of the time like DP Roy Chowdhury, Ramkinkar Baij, Sankho Chaudhuri, Dhanraj Bhagat and others.

Today NGMA is a leading art museum that has become a hub for art aficionados and also attracts people from all walks of life. Since its inception, the National Gallery of modern Art has continually evolved to expand its role in the field of education and research.

It has striven to keep the common man engaged with art and culture by organising interdisciplinary art workshops, lectures and community driven projects.