Kaiko Moti
Kaiko Moti's philosophy, a philosophy he lived, was Art. More contemplative than descriptive, he endeavored to analyze his sensations before nature to better recreate its almost divine essence. The tree is not a tree, the rock is not a rock; it is the spirit which animates the tree, it is a latent power in the rock. The same quest underlies each one of Kaiko Moti's works, the quest for that entity which makes the illusory differences of the real vanish.
Born (Kaikobad Motiwalla) in Bombay, India on December 15, 1921. Moti was first educated at the Bombay School of Fine Arts but his talent led him onwards to study at the University College in London (on scholarship) and at the Slade School of Fine Arts, London, where he received a Master's degree in Painting and Sculpture. While still in London, he studied under MacWilliam and Reginald Butler.
Eventually moving to Paris in 1950, Moti attended the Academie de la Grand Chaumiere, Atelier Zadkine, to pursue his love of sculpture. Lack of space soon compelled him to turn his attention to working on copper plates and he studied engraving with William Stanley Hayter at Atelier 17. While working as an apprentice at the Hayter School, Moti innovated the principle of viscosity printing.
Influenced mainly by the Old Masters and, in particular, by Turner, Moti is recognized by many to be one of the premier engravers in the world. He claimed, however, to have no secret techniques, only to have refined the basic methods, learning from each work he created.
Moti was exhibited internationally at the Biennale in Venice, the Bibliotheque Nationale in Paris, the New York Public Library, the New Delhi Museum of Art, the Basel Art Fair, and Art Expo New York.
Kaiko Moti is represented in the permanent collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Paris Musee d'Art Moderne, and the Bibliotheque Nationale and is an honorary member of the Academy of Florence. In 1983, Moti was awarded the gold medal for the Competition d'Art Impressionist, Musee d'Argenteiul, France. Moti passed away in Paris in 1989.