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Akram Khan

© National Portrait Gallery, London

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Akram Khan

by Darvish Fakhr
composite of 9 panels in oil, 2008
19 5/8 in. x 19 5/8 in. (500 mm x 500 mm) each
Commissioned with help from the Jerwood Charitable Foundation through the Jerwood Portrait Commission, 2008
Primary Collection
NPG 6847

Sitterback to top

  • Akram Khan (1974-), Dancer and choreographer. Sitter in 2 portraits.

Artistback to top

This portraitback to top

In this portrait, Khan is shown performing his own interpretation of the nine rasa, or emotions, that underpin all Indian classical dance forms: love, comedy, kindness, heroism, fury, terror, disgust, wonder and tranquillity.

Linked publicationsback to top

  • I-Spy National Portrait Gallery, 2010, p. 56
  • Howgate, Sarah; Nairne, Sandy, A Guide to Contemporary Portraits, 2009, p. 25 Read entry

    Akram Khan (b. 1974) was introduced to Bengali folk dancing as a child and as a teenager he performed in Sir Peter Brook’s production of The Mahabharata. He also studied contemporary dance, and its fusion with classical Asian dance forms is pivotal to his choreographic style. Just as Khan has embraced collaborations with artists throughout his career, so this multi-panelled portrait by Darvish Fakhr, winner of the BP Travel Award in 2004, unites performance and the visual arts. The portrait is based on sketches, and video footage of Khan performing the nine rasas, or emotions, that underpin Indian classical dance and which provided the inspiration for the work.

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