Amrita Sher-Gil – ​‘Europe belongs to Picasso, India belongs to me’

‘Europe belongs to Picasso, Matisse, Braque and many others. India belongs to me alone.’ With these words, Amrita Sher-Gil (1913–1941) described her unique position in the art world. She is regarded as the founder of modern Indian art.

From 22 March 2026, the Drents Museum will present paintings and drawings by the Hungarian-Indian Amrita Sher-Gil (Budapest 1913 – Lahore 1941). She lived only 28 years, but left behind an impressive and influential body of work. Yet outside of India, Amrita Sher-Gil is still relatively unknown to the general public. This may also be due to the fact that her work has very rarely left India. The last time her art was shown in Europe was nearly twenty years ago.

Sher-Gil was born in Budapest to an Indian father and a Hungarian mother. She studied in Paris, where she became the first Indian student at the École des Beaux-Arts. In addition to Picasso, Matisse and Braque, she was inspired by Paul Cézanne, Vincent van Gogh and Suzanne Valadon. At a young age she developed a distinctive style, and her work received awards. In 1934 she returned to India, where she found her own voice: a powerful blend of European modernist influences and Indian colours, themes and narratives.

Amrita Sher-Gil lived only 28 years, but left behind an impressive and innovative body of work. Like her contemporary Frida Kahlo, she followed her own path and gave women an important place in her work.

The Drents Museum will show around sixty paintings and drawings on loan from the National Gallery of Modern Art in New Delhi, which holds the largest and most comprehensive collection of her work. The exhibition highlights her artistic development: from her Parisian period to the works in which she captures the power and beauty of everyday life in India. Her paintings are regarded as national heritage and rarely leave India. The exhibition offers a unique opportunity to see her masterpieces close to home.