Afza Tamkanat

Afza Tamkanat is a contemporary Indian artist born in 1990 in Hyderabad, into a distinguished creative lineage that includes a playwright great-grandfather, a poet grandfather, and her father, celebrated artist Fawad Tamkanat, whom she credits as her greatest inspiration. She holds a BFA from JNTU, Hyderabad (2011) and an MFA from the University of Hyderabad (2014), and in 2016 became the youngest recipient of the Devi Award, conferred by The Indian Express for empowering women through art.

Working across realism and subtle surrealism in a restrained, nostalgic palette, Tamkanat paints an intimate visual diary of memory and belonging — sparrows from her grandmother's courtyard, Hyderabad's streets, and, since relocating to Sydney, Australian landscapes. Her work has featured in solo and group shows across India, Dubai, Singapore, New York, Melbourne, and London, and sits in private collections in the US, Italy, Germany, and Dubai, including the Luciano Benetton Collection.