Academy of Fine Arts, set up at the initiative of Lady Ranu Mukherjee in 1933, is situated on the Cathedral Road, near the
Victoria Memorial, in
Kolkata. It is a place, where Kolkata's culturally conscious intellectuals converge.
The academy has permanent galleries for medieval Bengali and Indian miniature paintings, weapons, sculptures, textiles, and excellent specimens of old hand-woven Daccai and Baluchari sarees. It holds regular art exhibitions of contemporary artists throughout the year.
There is an auditorium popular with small theater groups. The academy also operates an Artists' Studio for the advantage of working artists.
Rabindra Gallery, the major gallery in the academy, houses original paintings and personal belongings of Rabindranath Tagore. Its Miniature Gallery has a collection of authentic Mughal paintings. A number of beautiful Persian exhibits are in the Carpets Gallery.
