Ba Kyi
| Ba Kyi ဘကြည် |
|
|---|---|
| Born |
17 July 1912 Kyaikto, British Burma |
| Died | 15 April 2000 (aged 87) Yangon, Myanmar |
| Nationality | Burmese |
| Education | Apprentice to Ba Nyan, École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts (Paris), Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, University of Pennsylvania School of Fine Arts |
| Known for | Painting |
| Movement | Neo-Traditional Burmese Painting |
Ba Kyi, FRSA (Burmese: ဘကြည် [ba̰ tɕì]; 17 July 1912 – 15 April 2000) was a well-known and prolific Burmese artist. He was initially trained in western painting, but in the post-World War II independence period, he initiated a revival of Traditional painting, borrowing from the Western training he had received as well as his own cultural heritage of painting styles and techniques.
Ba Kyi was born on 16 July 1912 in Kyaikhto, and took up painting at an early age. He attended Rangoon University where he gained an Intermediate of Science and a Teachers Certificate. Beginning in 1933, he apprenticed under the master Ba Nyan, who had studied western oil painting in London, England and who painted in a realist and naturalist style. His fellow students studying with Ba Nyan included Bogalay Kyaw Hlaing, Aye Maung and Thein Han (painter). In 1939, when the State School of Art and Music opened, Ba Kyi became an art instructor there. Under the Japanese occupation during World War II, he was an art lecturer at the Institute of Art, which was organized by the Japanese. He designed currency notes, stamps and propaganda posters. After Myanmar regained independence, he painted huge theatre backdrops and drew many magazine covers and illustrations.
In 1949, he won a French government scholarship to the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris, where he studied for one year. He was able to exhibit two of his works in Paris at 162e Exposition, Societe des artists francais, Salon 1949, and also in art shows in London and Monte Carlo. On his return, he was commissioned to illustrate the History of the Buddha compiled by Agga Maha Pandita Ashin Zanakabhivamsa, which he executed in watercolor in the Traditional Burmese painting style while adding considerable innovation. In 1958, the United States government awarded him a scholarship to study for a year at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia. During this time, he also attended the University of Pennsylvania School of Fine Arts in a program aimed towards earning an M.A., but he returned to Burma early and did not earn his M.A. there. As he is quoted often in Burma as possessing an M.A., including on his own resume, it seems that the M.A. was awarded to him by the Burmese government or some educational institution in Burma upon his return to Burma.
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Wikipedia