India Ink is a collection of letters written by American Martha McKee Keehn during 1953-1961. The story of the Keehn family adjusting to the Indian way of life runs parallel to their role as collectors of modern Indian art. Martha's engaging letters interspersed with paintings from their collection captures the optimism and creative spirit of 1950s India, basking in the warm sun of its new-found independence.

Thomas B. Keehn, his wife Martha and two children arrived in 1953. He represented a U.S. non-profit organization – the American International Association for Economic and Social Development – established by Nelson A. Rockefeller. Activities focused on marketing of Indian handicrafts and supervised credit for small farmers. Projects were developed in collaboration with the Indian Cooperative Union headed by Kamaladevi Chattapadhya and Executive Director Lakshmi C. Jain.

A third program initiative was to become involved in the emerging modern art movement in India. Modern art was an enduring interest of Mr. Rockefeller who was a major supporter of the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Martha Keehn, in inveterate letter writer, wrote many letters to family and friends in the U.S. during the eight years they lived in India. The letters reported such things as the birth of four children in India, travel to many parts of the country, connections with  Indian friends and visitors from abroad. The Keehn family was “at home” in India.

A very close friend was Welthy Fisher, founder of Literacy House in Lucknow and World Education in the U.S. Tom and Martha worked with World Education for many years after returning to the U.S. from India. During this time, they often discussed “doing something” with the letters Martha had written from India. Two events in the mid 1990’s led to the production of INDIA INK. 

In 1995, for the first time, modern Indian paintings were included in art auctions in New York, London and elsewhere. The Keehn family collection of modern art from their India years consisted of works by M.F. Husain, Ram Kumar, Krishen Khanna, V.S. Gaitonde and others. It was a small but important collection of early paintings by these now well-known artists.. 

In April 1996, Martha Keehn died in New York, a cancer victim. Tom Keehn revisited India in the next two years to reflect and develop new priorities. In conversations with Arun Vadehra a plan developed: combine Martha’s letters with the family collection of modern Indian art in a book called INDIA INK – Martha’s chosen title – published by the Vadehra Art Gallery.