114-115 / 256
114
Saffronart | Evening Sale
115
PROPERTY OF A DISTINGUISHED GENTLEMAN,
NEW DELHI
45
M F HUSAIN
(1913 ‒ 2011)
Untitled
Signed and dated in Devnagari (lower right);
bearing Vadehra Art Gallery label (on the reverse)
1965
Oil on board
47.75 x 23.75 in (121.5 x 60.5 cm)
Rs 75,00,000 ‒ 85,00,000
$ 113,640 ‒ 128,790
PROVENANCE:
Acquired from Vadehra Art Gallery
Husain’s genius for incorporating diverse
influences in his art is seen in this lot. The
composition of miniature painting and the
plasticity of Indian sculpture is evoked here.
The entire painting takes on the grainy brown
texture of stone sculptures. The embrace of
the seated figures is reminiscent of classical
Persian and Indian miniatures, which often
depicted lovers in variations of this pose.
Husain travelled extensively across India
between 1948 and 1955, where “his
exposure, in rapid succession, to Mathura
sculpture and Jain and Basohli painting... had
a decisive impact on the formal aspect of
his work.” (Richard Bartholomew and Shiv S
Kapur,
Husain
,
New York: Harry N Abrams,
Inc., 1972, pp. 36, 38)
Nara Narayana panel on the eastern wall
of the Vishnu temple, circa 5
th
century
Source: Wikipedia