Manav Gupta (born 29 December 1967) is an Indian contemporary artist known for his paintings, installations and large-scale public art projects on environment consciousness and sustainable development.

He has reinvented[1] the identity of rural Indian clay pottery and redeployed various other material like construction scrap to create site specific, contemporary art[2] and environmental installations[3] and sculptures.

[14] He has co-opted his art practices in paintings, poetry, music and sound to create one-minute films on climate change,[15] sustainable development,[16] ecosystems and alternate energy for public service messages commissioned by the Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India (2005–2006,2011).

Gupta created single edition functional sculptures and public installations with varied media including iron, steel, wood, discarded roots of trees, glass, recycled scrap metal and clay for interior and exterior corporate and private spaces.

Gupta became the first artist in residence at the Rashtrapati Bhawan[46] as he was invited to stay in the Family Wing for a week[47] to paint the Mughal Gardens and work on the project.

At the President of India's inaugural address at the centenary celebrations of the National Gallery of Modern Art, Kalam recounted his experience, praising the artist extensively.

[34] His concert series included 'jugalbandi's' with Anup Jalota,[60] a contemporary dance troupe and musicians with special needs,[61] and with Rahul Sharma, Rakesh Chaurasia and Vijay Ghate,[62] as three separate performances respectively, to raise funds for the Gonu victims of Oman.

[70] Towards the end of the year, Indian Council for Cultural Relations invited him for the inaugural solo show post their newly renovated gallery in New Delhi, for the curtain raiser of the artist's second trilogy to US and Europe on Climate Change – 'on my eyot – rainforests & the timeless metaphors of dreams'.

After his three-month project at the Bharti Airtel Headquarters in Gurgaon, the artist carried the second edition of his traveling trilogy: "on my eyot – rainforests & the timeless metaphors of dreams"[74] His works, extending to paintings and installations, films and performance art along with public collaborations on his canvases, were exhibited in New York, Des Moines, Amherst, San Francisco, Berlin, and London.

[59] While on tour he was invited for talks and lecture demonstrations by the San Jose State University, the Cultural Diplomacy Institute, Berlin and other local venues like the Des Moines Social club.

[6] He created the 'shrinking river' doing a 'Duchamp'[4][6] on them, inverting 'earthen lamps' in his 'unsung hymns of clay' series at his exhibition 'rainforests and the circle of life' hosted by the Indian High Commission and Incredible India in Ditsong National Museum of Natural History, South Africa.

[73][79] In 2014, the artist created an hour glass using earthen cups – the 'Time Machine' along with 20 ft High Canvases from his 'Umbilical Cords' series at Aerocity, New Delhi for their permanent collection.

[80] In the latter half of 2015, Gupta researched further for 3 months at Minneapolis, Des Moines, New York, Washington DC and Miami on his installation series where he redeployed clay pottery to take note on audience reactions at different venues gathering and drawing similarities between the important socio-cultural connects of people and practices with their respective rivers- 'how Indians pay homage to their rivers with earthen lamps and how people deposit tobacco as a form of an offering to Mississippi.

[6][95] The exhibition was visited and critiqued by Vandana Shiva, Pheroza Godrej, Shyam Benegal, Lokesh Chandra, Amitabh Kant, Yogendra Narain, Anjolie Ela Menon, along with several others.

Gupta, inspired by Marcel Duchamp, inverted the Earthen lamp to symbolise a water droplet,[6][4] and created "the shrinking river" in an exhibition hosted by the Indian High Commission and Incredible India in the National Museum, Pretoria, South Africa.

Says Gupta as he further observes and brings to the attention of the viewer: "The same bowl of clay that had no meaning, no significance or existence in the human psyche suddenly turns into the medium of conveying the desires of the soul or the temporary vessel of gratification.

When dusk fell and the area was lit up, audiences and media exclaimed on how one could almost hear the sound of the waves due to the calmness and serenity it added to an unused Plaza Steps.

As critiqued: "The most striking factor about the installation was the optical illusion that Gupta had succeeded in creating with the earthen lamps and hanging chillums of an actual river flowing.

[102] As quoted by critics and dailies: It is remarkable how Gupta's artwork continues to evolve and transform over months as the installation remains exposed to the elements in outdoor settings.

Bees, often overlooked but significant in the chain of evolution and mankind's sustainability, play a central role in the Gupta's global beehive garden project.

They act as a constant reminder to contribute, even in small ways, to the preservation of bees and biodiversity, ultimately making a positive impact in the vast ocean of conservation efforts.

According to Gupta, clay, symbolizing the raw essence of existence and sustainability, is used metaphorically to represent the limited nature of Time, inviting us to reflect on our role in the utilization of earth's resources.

This sculpture-installation aims to evoke philosophical and spiritual contemplation, exploring the intricate relationship between human intelligence, emotional depth, and art appreciation.

This aspect aligns with the underlying theme of sustainable development, emphasizing the importance of preserving Earth's natural resources and fostering harmonious relationships between humans and the planet.

Through these symbolic elements, the artwork encourages contemplation on the transient nature of love, the intertwining of human existence, and the potential for sustainable growth and development.

Some of his notable series on paintings are, titled "Intimate Whispers", "Rainforests", "Non-Limiting Horizons",[67] "Lyrics of Light", "Shoonya-from Beyond" and "Umbilical Cords of Earth, Air, Water, Fire & Space".

[23] Gupta has also used his paintings along with his poetry to create one minute and thirty second films as public service messages commissioned by the Ministry of Environments and Forests, Govt of India for television on climate change, sustainable development, ecosystems and alternate energy.

[123] When commissioned by Bharti Airtel Ltd to create a "staircase artwork"[124] at their headquarters, the artist introduced a unique sustainable development process in corporate entity, by establishing that art can contribute to the business environment as well, by refreshing the intangible quality of its soft power among employees.

Adding a collaborative dimension, he conceptualised the mural as a public art project by allowing thousands of employees the experience of putting brush strokes.

With Gupta working solo all through the day, live in front of 3500 employees and almost as many visitors at the corporate campus site, the mural took three months to complete as an evolving storyline of five elements in Nature.