Artist Yogesh Rawal dies of Covid-19

In the 1970s and 80s, when most Indian artists were experimenting with conventional genres, a young artist in Mumbai, Yogesh Rawal, was finding his path in more spiritual and minimalistic compositions.

His meditative leanings were rooted in the self and acknowledged the world over in the years to come. On Friday, Rawal breathed his last in Gurugram’s Medanta Hospital, succumbing to Covid.

“He clearly led his generation with his sense of minimalism. He had a great sense of depth and light which is difficult to find in many artists of the time. People looked up to him, respected him. He was not part of the race,” said close friend Rajeev Sethi, founder-trustee and chairman of Asian Heritage Foundation.

Born in 1954 in Wankaner, Saurashtra, Rawal came to Mumbai during his formative years and pursued his early education in the city. After doing odd jobs, he joined the Sir JJ School of Art, from where he graduated in 1978.

A French government scholarship took him to Paris, where he studied lithography at L’Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux-arts. He also learnt etching at the renowned printmaking studio Atelier 17, under Stanley William Hayter, before returning to Mumbai.