Ajay Desai was born in 1955 in Lucknow, India He graduated from the MS University, Baroda in 1981 in Fine Arts He received a British Council Scholarship to study at the Royal College of Arts in London He was then employed at the Kanoria Centre of Arts in Ahmadabad and also taught at the National Institute of Design, Ahmadabad 1985-1987 His chosen focus is landscapes which he annotates as anthropomorphic The centrality of his works is constantly changing from narrative to structural emphasis He was awarded the Navdeep Award by the Government of Gujarat in 1998 He recently exhibited at Nature Morte, New Delhi He lives and works in Baroda