Subrahmanyan was born in 1924, Kuthuparamba in Kerala, India. He was involved in the freedom struggle and was known for following Gandhian ideology. He was later banned from joining the government colleges and was imprisoned during British Rule.
As an artist, his turning point came into the existence when he visited Kala Bhavan, the art faculty of Visva Bharati University in 1944. Under the teachers like Nandalal Bose, Benode Behari Mukherjee, and Ramkinkar Baij, he studied there till 1948.
He became a lecturer at the M.S. University in Baroda. In 1956, he went on to study in London at the Slade School of Art as a British council scholar 1956.
In 1980, K.G. Subrahmanyan went back to the Santiniketan to teach in his alma mater Kala Bhavan. He taught there for 8 years. After that, he was made a Professor Emeritus of Vishva Bharati.
He was deeply influenced by Kerala’s folk art and Kalighat paintings as well as Indian court paintings.
Vikash Kalra is a self-taught artist and writer based in New Delhi whose work has been exhibited across India and is held in several private and corporate collections.