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The present lot was painted in
1974, when Souza lived in New
York. By this time, the artist had
held several important exhibitions
in England and the US, and had
achieved success and recognition
in the international art world. His
earlier landscapes and cityscapes
contained linear structures and
dark and sombre tones delineated
by bold, black lines. The present lot,
perhaps a rendition of Central Park
and the surrounding city, is a rare,
joyful departure into unrestrained
gestural brushstrokes among a riot
of bright colours.
There are no black lines here. The
outlines of buildings are visible
only in fragments, surrounded by a
vibrant field of green and blue that is
both, water and sky. According to art
critic Geeta Kapur, “A huge cracker
seems to go off in the foundations
of his cities and the buildings begin
to sway and tumble and lean against
each other in frantic postures.”
(Geeta Kapur, “Devil in the Flesh,”
Contemporary Indian Artists
, New
Delhi: Vikas Publishing House, 1978,
p. 30) This fiery and unbridled style
of painting prompted critic Richard
Bartholomew to write: “Souza can
represent the essence of nature in
a small, spontaneously assembled
still‒life or suggest in an equally small
landscape the meaning of place and
time... there is the brooding quiet and
pristine freshness of dawn and night
in the landscapes...” (quoted in Rati
Bartholomew, Pablo Bartholomew,
Carmen Kagal and Rosalyn D’Mello
eds.,
Richard Bartholomew: The Art
Critic
, Noida: BART, 2012, p. 548)
“Beauty is Nature’s creation; colours are a wonder;
Light, which contains colours, is a miracle…”
FRANCIS NEWTON SOUZA
16
F N SOUZA
(1924 ‒ 2002)
Townscape
Signed and dated 'Souza 74' (upper left); inscribed and
dated 'F. N. SOUZA/ TOWNSCAPE 1974' (on the reverse)
1974
Oil on board
19.5 x 23.5 in (49.5 x 60 cm)
Rs 25,00,000 ‒ 35,00,000
$ 39,685 ‒ 55,560
PROVENANCE:
Saffronart, 4‒6 May 2004, lot 40
Central Park, New York