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A curious boy from Pandharpur, ported to the city of dreams, Mumbai and conquered his spirit of modernity in tandem with the awakening independent India. This is the Pablo Picasso of India, MF Husain. Strolling barefoot across the rustic streets of Bombay (now Mumbai), all that he needed was a paint brush with which he created magic using his vibrant color palette. With a humbling beginning, Husain started his artistic journey in 1935 by painting graphic billboards for Bollywood movies. Across his life span, Husain produced a diverse range of artworks from rare jewelry and tapestry to toys. He created works that could be caustic and funny as well as serious and sombre.
In 1948, Husain visited an exhibition at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Delhi with Souza, where he was awe- struck by the classical Indian sculpture and traditional miniature painting from the Rajput and Pahari courts. It resembled an artistic portrayal in the form of a time lapse of Indian Art evolution back then. This show evoked a self-realization in the artist about how little he had contributed to that historical lineage.
Man, 1951 (Wood, metal, mesonite and oil)
Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, Massachussetts, USA Gift of the Chester and Davida Herwitz Collection, 2001
"I deliberately picked up two to three periods of Indian history. One was the classical period of the Guptas, the very sensuous form of the female body. Next was the Basholi period, the strong colours of the Basholi miniatures. The last was the folk element."
(Husain quoted in Nandy, The Illustrated Weekly of India, December 4-10, 1983)
Celebrating Husain’s artistry genius across paintings, toys, jewellery and tapestry, AstaGuru curated the largest solo artist auction titled “Husain”, featuring 36 lots with a lot estimate of Rs 40 crores.
Rakshanda Hussain, Specialist, AstaGuru, commented, “MF Husain is the most globally recognized Modern Master of our time and his works have always been one of the top draws at modern Indian art auctions witnessing a consistent demand. Through this landmark offering we hope to set a new precedent for Husain as well as the category of modern Indian art. We have carefully selected some of the greatest artworks many of which are milestones not just for the artist but also for Indian modernism. The wide range of works represent Husain’s individualistic style and showcase the diverse subject matter of his expansive body of work. The auction is led by ‘Voices’, the third most important composition created by the artist and a break-through work which gained him immense international recognition and accolades.”
Here are my top 5 picks from this diverse curation:
1. Apsaras
Tempera on wood, circa 1950
Apsara, in Indian religion and mythology, is one of the celestial singers and dancers, who together with the gandharvas, or celestial musicians, inhabit the heaven of the God Indra. While growing up, the self-taught artist drew his own inspired versions of Hindu mythology, gods and goddesses. It is this propensity to paint Hindu mythology in his own style that eventually came back to haunt him later in his life and lead to his exile from India.
The physical beauty and the enigma of a woman’s character has fascinated creative minds since time immemorial. Husain continued to unapologetically redefine the notion of beauty in a female figurine through his art. Here, his wooden toys depicting three semi- nude dancing apsaras, capture the essence of beauty, grace in posture and an element of Indian mythology. It almost reminds one of a modern cubism take on 5th – 6th century frescoes of Apsaras engraved at Ajanta temples in India.
2. Between the Spider and Lamp
(L) Ink on Paper; (R) Oil on Board, 1956
In 1956, Husain painted a memorable painting 'Between the Spider and Lamp'. He depicts five women in a tight vertical composition. The figure on the left, painted in gray, is shown in profile, her head covered by her sari and her right hand raised. Carrying a lamp on her head, she appears to be speaking to the dark-skinned woman in the center of the image, who is looking down at the spider she is spearing to death with a long stick or wire. This woman has thick, prominent lips and wears a tribal-like dress and a wide armband. The third principal figure is shown with her arms crossed and facing the viewer. Her skin is bright yellow and her facial features seem Asiatic. Though she and the dark-skinned woman are utterly unengaged with each other, the two women behind them are deep in conversation. The unknown of this painting, unlike that of 'between the spider and the lamp', has a sense of lowering menace about it. Good humored mystery is replaced by cosmic anxiety. The painting postulates the undeniable pictorial cog of his practice, premised on racial diversity in India. The holistic framework that scaffolds the painting is mute yet animated with the resonance of a modulated white noise. The conversation ensued gets drowned, completely engulfed by the strong gestures that the artist deploys upon the collective.
Up on display in the auction, is the preliminary sketch that led Husain to unfolding this muted drama. The artwork eventually published as a Commerative Postal Stamp issued in 1983.
3. Murli Manohar
Tussar Silk, Circa 1980
In his extensive travels around India between 1948 and 56, Hussain developed an intimate understanding of the Basohli style of Indian miniature painting. A frequent refrain in this style is the romance between the hero and heroine, with particular reference to Radha and Krishna. ‘The nayaka-nayika (hero and heroine) theme - often portrayed in the guise of Radha and her divine lover Krishna - was the Basohli painter’s favourite subject; on pictorial composition of eloquent lyricism, he made his theme quick with emotion […] (Richard Bartholomew and Shiv S. Kapur, Husain, Harry N. Abram, New York, 1971, p. 38) Husain has marshaled this theme and combined it with his strong inclination towards rasa, the aesthetic content of an emotion in artistic works and performances. The rasa conveyed through the visual of Radha and Krishna is sringara, or sensual devotion. True to the character of sringara, Hussain has brought out the lyrical quality of romance. Unlike normally on his canvases, the artist seizes the timelessness of this scenario by weaving a silk tapestry rich in vibrant colors.
4. Spirit of India
Acrylic on Canvas, Circa 2000
Spirit of India is a painterly expression of Husain as a homage to his Home, India despite being away from home. This artwork also reminds one of how India’s diverse culture from its flora to fauna continued to be a part of his artistic vocabulary. His wisely chosen earthy tonal palette clearly awakes the Indian spirit in the viewer’s soul.
Here is a small verse that comes to my mind expressing my inner Indian spirit:
We live in a country,
Where rural and urban India has equal rights,
Where the farmer’s might is matched by entrepreneurial foresight,
Where the elephant gives way to a tiger, lithe and brave,
Into the future of freedom, let my country awake!
5. Theorama Series
Theorama is a ten panel series that was influenced by Husain’s past preoccupations with theosophy and his experiences as a billboard painter. Composed in the early 90s, Theorama tributes ten different faiths — highlighting the finer aspects in each. They are strung together in a series to celebrate plurality and spiritual unity in human faith.
From this extravagant series, two pieces will be a part of this collection – Islam and Zoroastrianism
Islam:
Acrylic on Canvas, 1992
Islam is Husain’s masterly dispiction of Muslim faith. To the left is a Sufi saint with his finger of ‘Kalema e Shahadah' raised. The black and majestic cube of Kaabah, inscribed with the Arabic ‘Kaaf’, is positioned at the heart of the image, emphasising its prominence in no uncertain terms. A circle beside the Kaabah represents the dome of the The Prophet’s mosque in Madinah. The artist has paid a simple yet substaintial homage to the religion through the keen use of color, line and religious motifs.
Zoroastrianism:
Acrylic on Canvas, Circa 1992
This particular piece showcases a Zoroaster, who is a prophet of God. He is depicted with a halo. He painted important motifs such as - Farvahar- representing the way people on earth should live and fire symbolizing purity. On the extreme right is the phrase “humata hukhta huvarshta” (Good Thoughts, Good Words, Good Deeds)
A Final Note:
“India did not banish Husain; actually, it is he who left her.
This has always happened here. A revolutionary thinker like Osho breathed and lived in our life time.
We merely watched and treated him the same way we have treated Husain. We are fearful of the changes happening around us. We resist the new because we have no place for it inside ourselves. We shoot the one and only Gandhi dead.
When these people have exited this realm, we search for them high and low. We cherish the past, everything gone by. Eventually, we start collecting their mementoes, gaze upon them, completely baffled, and bow down to them in utter reverence.
This is what will transpire with Husain also. See for yourself.”
Image Courtesy: AstaGuru
Live Auction: 29th August - 30th August, 2020