"For me art is something I have to do; my reason for being."

K.G. Subramanyan, popularly known as "Mani da," is regarded as one of the founders of Indian modern art and had a significant role in developing India's post-independence identity through his works of art. His work, which was greatly influenced by Indian folk and traditional art traditions as well as by western concepts like cubism, gained recognition on a global scale for its unifying qualities. He believed that folk art had a type of mobility that other structured, sophisticated art forms lacked. In the 1960s he depicted women, children, objects, and animals. Until the Terrace series in the 1970s, his paintings were a study of objects as forms, with vibrant colors and abstract shapes. He imparted his knowledge of India's "living traditions" while lecturing at the Faculty of Fine Arts. His students created a unique visual language under his pedagogy.

A revered teacher and theoretician, he is a well-known fiction writer, poet and has written extensively on art. He has written and illustrated many children’s books. He received prestigious awards namely the Bombay Art Society Award 1957 and 1959, Medallion of Honorable Mention, Sao Paulo Biennale, Brazil, 1963, National Award, Lalit Kala Academy, New Delhi in 1968, Gold Medal, The First International Triennale, New Delhi 1965, Kalidas Samman in 1981, Gagan-Aban Puraskar, Visva Bharati, Santiniketan, 1991, Lalit Kala Ratna awarded by the Lalit Kala Akademi- Golden Jubilee 2004, Lifetime Achievement Award, Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata, 2005.

He was awarded the Padma Shri in 1975, Padma Bhushan in 2006, and Padma Vibhushan in 2012.

He passed away in 2016 at Vadodara.