Posted on 28 October 2026:

🎨 #YathraCanvas —Art in a Frame

Banaras: The Eternal Shore – Azad Kapoor’s Watercolor Symphony of Kashi’s Ghats Opens at Lalit Kala Akademi, Lucknow

The timeless ghats of Kashi found a new home in Lucknow today.

‘BANARAS: THE ETERNAL SHORE – A Watercolor Symphony’, a three-day solo exhibition by young artist and research scholar Azad Kapoor, was inaugurated at 3:00 PM at the State Lalit Kala Akademi, Lal Baradari (near High Court, Qaiserbagh), before a dignified gathering of art lovers.

Supported under the financial assistance scheme of the State Lalit Kala Akademi, Department of Culture, Government of Uttar Pradesh, the exhibition began with the lighting of the ceremonial lamp by Chief Guest Dr. Rakesh Tiwari, Former Director General of the Archaeological Survey of India. The event was presided over and patronized by Dr. Sunil Kumar Vishwakarma, President of the Akademi. Akademi Director Amit Agnihotri welcomed and felicitated the Chief Guest with an angavastra and a memento.

The Ganges, Painted in Light

The exhibition’s detailed compositions bring to life the Manikarnika, Chet Singh, Ahilyabai and Dashashwamedh Ghats. Visitors will find hushed morning light, boats drifting over gentle ripples, devotees bathing and meditating on wide stone stairways, and the setting sun playing across ancient stone.

“The varied colors scattered across the walls of old buildings, the interplay of shifting shadows cast by the sun’s rays, and the expansive, rhythmic patterns of the stone steps lend an extraordinary beauty to these scenes,” says Azad Kapoor

Born of Dawn-to-Dusk Fieldwork

Azad Kapoor completed his BFA, MFA and M.Phil at Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapith, Varanasi, where he is now pursuing his Ph.D. in Fine Arts. Through patient observation along the riverbanks, he has turned the spiritual rhythm of the ghats into spontaneous, delicate watercolors.

“Sitting in the first light of dawn and working for hours became a part of my daily life. Gradually, this unique atmosphere of Banaras became deeply ingrained within me,” artist added.

Among those present were Hari Darshan Sankhya, Praveen Prakash Himanshu, Satyendra Kumar, Raviprakash Singh, Ashish Vishwakarma, Rahul Gautam, Rohit Kumar and Anshu.

📍 Venue: State Lalit Kala Akademi, Lal Baradari, Qaiserbagh (Near High Court), Lucknow
📅 Dates: October 27 – 29, 2026

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