1932 – 2011

Born inThiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu he studied Art at The Government College of Arts and Crafts, Madras and later was its principal from 1985- 1990. Santhanaraj is considered by many in South India to be the most influential artist of the second wave that followed K.C.S. Panniker and S. Dhanapal out of the Madras College of Arts and Craft.A P Santhanaraj is recognized for his sense of space and line. From the very beginning he was recognized as an excellent draughtsman and a painter of immense possibility.A notable characteristic about his work is that he never let ideological reasons to interfere with his working. He has expertise in portraiture, both painting and sculpture.

Santhanaraj received a lot of recognition and awards. In 1953 he was awarded Gold Medal by the Govt. College of Art and Craft, Madras. In 1962, he received National Award from Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi. He was honoured for the distinction of services in the field of art education by Tamil Nadu Art and Culture Department, Madras. In 1962 he was commissioned to paint a portrait for the Parliament House of India, New Delhi.