Born in 1914 in Navsari, Gujarat, Shiavax Chavda was a student of the eminent Sir JJ School of Art, Mumbai In 1935 he studied at the Slade School, London, under the tutelage of Professor Randolph Schwabe and then later under Vladimir Polunin Shiavax Chavda was considered one of the pioneers of Indian modern art in the 40s and 50s and a master of the agility of line His ability to sympathise with his animate protagonists or inanimate architectural motifs, he effortlessly glides into the crux of their existence, etching the same on the surface with minimalistic deft strokes which was the hallmark of his work Chavda was deeply rooted with various other forms of art and represented dance in particular gracefully through the force of his swirling linesChavda had his first solo exhibition in Mumbai in 1945 followed by international exhibitions in Indonesia, Singapore, London, Paris and Switzerland to name a few His works have also been showcased in the UNESCO International exhibition in 1946 and the Salon de Mai in Paris, 1951 In 1956, he was elected as one of the nine Eminent Artists of India by Lalit Kala Akademi and later elected as a Fellow of Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi In the year 2017 he had a posthumous retrospective of his works in Jehangir art gallery The artist passed away in the year 1990