Bio
Mahalaxmi Karn was born in 1988 in Ranti village famous as the birthplace of Madhubani art and has received training under famous Madhubani artist and her guru, Santosh Kumar Das from 2012. Mahalaxmi has also been awarded a scholarship from the Ministry of Culture in the field of Madhubani Painting (2013-15). She has been working in collaboration with Shantanu Das, a contemporary Mithila artist on other art projects. Her works are part of several exhibits in France, USA and South Africa. Mahalaxmi is also adept in creating large scale murals.
The artist conceives her work as a response to make sense of the world around her. After refining her traditional skill by painting the usual subjects of mythological and ritualistic themes, the artist was inspired to break out and include new themes. As a result she started exploring portraiture in Madhubani style. Portraits of fishermen, household women, etc. appealed to the artist. Gradually, she began representing the unexplored inner lives of the women, their hardships and sacrifices in some series. Her art draws its purpose from reflecting upon the ways society treats women folk.
Mahalaxmi has worked with Tara Books on the autobiography based on the life of her guru Santosh Kumar Das, ‘Black’ as a tribute to him. She has also illustrated in a photo book titled ‘Early Times’ by a French photographer which based on the Ramayana.