Debashis Sen’s sixth AI canvas show brings generative art into Kolkata gallery
More than two dozen single-print works at Gaganendra Art Gallery frame AI as a medium directed by human imagination.
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Debashis Sen, the former Indian Administrative Service officer and former HIDCO chairman, has opened his sixth solo exhibition of generative canvas art at Kolkata’s Gaganendra Art Gallery. The four-day show contains more than two dozen works, ranging in theme from still life to “children of God,” and runs through Nov. 15.
The exhibition was inaugurated at 5 p.m. on Nov. 12 by Father Felix Raj, vice chancellor of St Xavier’s University. Ravindra Chamaria, chairman and managing director of Infinity Group, attended as distinguished guest, while Ashok Mullick was also present.
Sen began making art after retiring from public service in February 2024, according to ANI and Millennium Post. His first exhibition, at the Academy of Fine Arts in April and May that year, was presented as an early attempt to establish AI-generated imagery as a distinct creative genre. His subsequent Kolkata shows have included venues such as ITC Sonar, Chitrakoot Art Gallery and Biswa Bangla Mela Prangan.
Sen describes generative AI as an additional medium for human imagination rather than an artist or substitute for traditional creative practice. “My objective is not to demonstrate what artificial intelligence can generate, but to explore what a human mind can create with the assistance of these new tools,” he said.
His process starts with an original concept and visualisation, then moves through prompts, repeated experimentation and a review of multiple outputs. He refines instructions, composition and aesthetic choices, with some works requiring hundreds of iterations before their final form.
The Gaganendra works are framed canvases issued as unique single prints, rather than editions with multiple reproductions. Sen said he wanted viewers to see “the human spark, the creativity and life” in the canvases, while the exhibition aims to shift AI-generated imagery from computer screens and social-media feeds into physical spaces.
That emphasis was echoed at the opening. Raj said paintings should become conversation starters in homes and contribute atmosphere and character in offices, hotels and airport lounges. Chamaria said the next step was to bring the work into everyday physical environments, while Mullick urged artists to embrace new means of expression.
The exhibition is open from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. through Nov. 15.
- Medium Art and design