Mansoor Ali

Artist's Biography

Mansoor Ali Makrani specializes in sculpture and predominantly works in/with large scale sculptural installations to create artworks that engage with identitarian politics and humanitarian concerns. Born in Vachchhesar (Gujarat), in 1978, Mansoor received his schooling at St. Mary’s, Mount Abu which, he credits, instituted in him faith in the harmonious co-existence of different cultures. He earned his BFA (2002) and MFA (2004) in Sculpture at the Faculty of Fine Arts, Maharaja Sayajirao University, Baroda which further augmented the fact that the ‘cultural diversity’ or ‘multiculturalism’ is the foundation of our collective strength in our local communities and in our increasingly global society. Mansoor’s works have been featured in number of group exhibitions in India and abroad, including shows like Empire Strikes Back: Contemporary Indian Art Today (Saatchi Gallery, London, 2010); Go See India (Gothenburg, Sweden, 2010) and Artissima 17 (Italy, 2010). He had his first solo show, The Anatomy of an Unknown Chair, at Gallery Maskara, Mumbai in 2014. His public sculpture Carriers of Democracy was exhibited in one of the collateral events, The Edge Effect (supported by Sunaparanta Goa Center for the Arts), for Kochi Muziris Biennale 2014. Mansoor also received the inaugural CIMA award (Kolkata) for his intense yet thought-provoking work The Anatomy of an Unknown Chair, which was followed by his second solo show Whose Chair Is It, Anyway? His works feature in public and private collections, including Charles Saatchi and Karen and Duncan Foundation. Mansoor Ali lives and works in Baroda, India.