Husain: A protean maverick, a prolific artist

In an obituary to the iconic Indian artist, The BBC reported: “One of India's most famous artists, MF Husain, has died in hospital in London aged 95 after years of self-imposed exile. He had been unwell for several months.”

Art critic S Kalidas said Mr Husain was painting until two weeks before his death, and led a "full life". "He could paint anywhere - on the streets, in the studio. He was colourful, agile in mind and body. He was a fast thinking and fast painting man. I have never seen anybody paint so fast," he said.

“Maqbool Fida Husain was India's most iconic and prolific artist - and painted right up until two weeks before his death in London at the age of 95.”A New Delhi based writer on art & culture, Sudha G Tilak, wrote in The BBC News essay: “Husain was a protean maverick who embraced the free market, took to making cinema, angered Hindu radicals at home with his provocative work, gamely took leaving India in his stride, accepted Qatari nationality and loved fast cars, including a red Ferrari that he owned.”

"I have expressed only 10% - 90% is still inside. I don't think I will be able to do it, I think I have to take that with me to my grave," he had said in a recent interview. His peers and admirers marveled at the energy of this indefatigable painter - artist Anjolie Ela Menon says he "ran ahead of all of us - he had such energy".

So much so that he declared five years ago that he planned to work on ‘three major projects’: histories of Indian civilization, ‘other civilizations’ and a history of "cinema which is close to my heart".

When his admirers in India got worked up about his self-imposed exile, he calmly told an interviewer: "Nothing is stopping me; I can return tomorrow. But please know I remain an Indian painter whether I am painting in Paris, London, New York or Qatar..."

Prominent artists whose works feature in the latest Christie's auction

Works by some of the biggest names in Indian and Pakistani contemporary art are to be sold by the British auction house, Christie's, on Thursday. The sale is led by this picture of a figure on a rickshaw by Tyeb Mehta (1925-2009) - one of the most significant works to come on to the market and expected to fetch up to £1.2m ($1.96m).

Leading the contemporary works is a painting, entitled ‘Father’ (1989) by Atul Dodiya (b 1959), which is expected to sell for up to £250,000. Mr Dodiya is regarded as one of the leading artists of his generation. This picture was part of his first solo show, which was autobiographical and reflected the influences of 20th Century greats such as Edward Hopper and David Hockney.

‘Idol Thief I’ (2006) by Subodh Gupta (b 1964) is, according to Christie's, "firmly rooted in the vernacular of everyday India". Buyers in Singapore, Hong Kong, the UAE, the US and Europe have expressed an interest in this work.

An untitled work by Jitish Kallat (b 1975) is expected to sell for up to £180,000. The artist is renowned for employing a bold and vivid visual language that is influenced by both Asian and European artistic traditions, along with popular advertising imagery.

Neha is exciting oil on linen work by Schandra Singh that is expected to be sold for up to £35,000. Ms Singh is based in New York and her large-scale paintings show people in relaxing situations "as a form of escape from distress".

Also being sold in the auction are less expensive paintings such as this work by Rina Banerjee. It is expected to sell for up to £12,000. Ms Banerjee is based in Manhattan in the US and her work has been exhibited at the Bronx Museum of the Arts and Whitney Museum of American Art. A work by Khadim Ali is also comparatively less expensive. Put together in gold leaf and signed and dated in Urdu, it is expected to make up to £8,000.

(Information courtesy: The BBC NEWS)

New Christie's auction that ‘represents the very best of South Asian art’

The British auction house, Christie's, is carrying out a major sale that presents the market with one of the most exciting groups of contemporary South Asian art ever to be offered at auction," according to Yamini Mehta, director of modern and contemporary South Asian art at the auction house.

A well-known artist whose works form part of the sale is Francis Newton Souza. This painting from 1958 is expected to fetch up £500,000. Executed during a high point of his career, it utilizes 'savage brushstrokes and a fiery palette while maximizing use of space by constructing a cityscape from a series of overlapping, highly-faceted geometric forms. The overall affect is one of fractured stained glass', Christie's experts say.

Some of the most sought-after works submitted to the auction by Mr Souza's family are a pair of paneled glass French doors (half of which can be seen above) that were once a prominent feature of his studio flat and are expected to fetch up to £120,000. Each door comprises 30 drawings which provide a montage of "windows" into the artist's imagination.

An important modernist work is an untitled piece done in 1955 by Akbar Padamsee (b 1928), an artist whose work has recently gained new momentum and weight on the international stage. This picture is expected to sell for up to £400,000. It is a rare and early work executed during his time in Paris.

Mention must be made of ‘Going Away’ by Nilima Sheikh. Apart from exhibiting her work in India and internationally, she has lectured on Indian art at many venues in her home country and internationally. Going Away is expected to fetch up to £80,000.

"The sale as a whole is expected to generate in excess of £4m and represents the cream of South Asian art," a Christie's spokesman has been quoted as saying.

(Information courtesy: The BBC NEWS)

'Organics' as the core theme of a group show

Twelve Gates Art Gallery in Philadelphia presents 'Organics', a group show of works by Amina Ahmed, Delna Dastur, Ina Kaur, Antonio Puri, Gurpran Rau, and Nitin Mukul. The idea is to highlight the multifariousness of the organic art genre by collating organic works with different inspirations and origins - placed within the realm of the social and personal identity of the South Asian American art.

The force behind Antonio Puri’s work is the deconstruction of identifiable social labels to evaluate the idea of one's existence. Gurpran Rau creates surfaces, which evoke weathered walls that reveal underlying histories and denote passage of time. Nitin Mukul contrasts elements of ‘both the terrestrial and urban’ and employs forms that ‘refer to the worlds constituted by both the biological and social’.

The recurring elements in Amina Ahmed’s work are geometry, repetition and rhythm whereas the richly saturated colors of artist Delna Dastur’s are inspired by nature. Ina Kaur focuses on identity trapped in the continuum of cross-cultural negotiation. Amina Ahmed, a current member of the Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts NY, presents an installation that explores pattern and measurement, working with the fivefold symmetry. Here Ahmed explores the way her work “organically unfolds and re-folds tracing the steps of an underlying path.”

Delna Dastur received her BA in Art History from Wellesley College and MFA from American University. She is currently a faculty member at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. and The Art League of Alexandria. Ina Kaur is a native of New Delhi and currently heads the drawing and printmaking area at the University of Tampa. Her work focuses on identity caught in the ‘continuum of cross-cultural negotiation.’

Juxtaposition is a major theme in Mukul's artwork. He uses a range of media such as painting, video, installation, and set design. Antonio Puri’s artwork is as complex as the idea behind them, using layers of veneers, glazes, and varnishes. Gurpran Rau is a San Francisco based artist. She studied art at New Delhi Polytechnic, La Sorbonne, The École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-arts (Paris), and Purdue University. ‘Organics’ features a selection of Rau's work that are organic mixed-media.

(Information courtesy: Twelve Gates Art Gallery, Philadelphia)

Artistic spotlight on Hinduism's blue-skinned savior

‘Vishnu: Hinduism’s Blue-Skinned Savior’, a major museum exhibition, focuses on one of Hinduism’s three major deities. It presents around 170 paintings, sculptures, and ritual objects that were made in India between the 4th and twentieth centuries.

This show at Brooklyn Museum (June 24–October 2, 2011) serves as a brief survey of Hindu art styles as well as an examination of the Vaishnava (Vishnu-worshipping) tradition. An accompanying note elaborates: “Hinduism, the world’s third-largest religion, was first codified in India around 1000 BCE and has been practiced there since that time, perpetually absorbing new beliefs and approaches, while continuing to recognize the sanctity of older traditions.

Each of the three primary Hindu deities—Vishnu the Preserver, Shiva the Destroyer, and Devi the Great Goddess—is believed by his worshippers to be responsible for creating and maintaining the cycle of life, and to be a portal to ultimate salvation. Some Hindus affiliate themselves with one of the three gods, while others worship more broadly. Those who worship Vishnu—an extremely large and diverse group—are known as Vaishnavas.”

Known as Hinduism’s gentle god, Vishnu is easily recognized in paintings by his blue skin. While he is an interesting figure in his primary form, the complexity of Vishnu's character becomes clear when he assumes new forms, known as avatars, in order to save the earth from various dangers. Vishnu’s ten avatars reveal the multiplicity of ways that one can envision and interact with the divine.

The first section introduces the Hindu god in his primary form, with subsections dedicated to his attributes, his consorts, and his legends. The second section examines his avatars, as a group and then individually. The incarnations more frequently celebrated in art are fully represented, with substantial subsections dedicated to both Rama and Krishna. The third section of the exhibition shows some of the ways in which Vishnu has been worshipped, with images of ritual objects.

‘Vishnu: Hinduism's Blue-Skinned Savior’ has been organized by the Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Nashville, Tennessee. It has been curated by Joan Cummins, Lisa and Bernard Selz Curator of Asian Art.

A precise focus on the global art markets

A renowned cultural economist, Clare McAndrew specializes in the domain of fine & decorative art market. An astute analyst of art-market statistics, she first proved in categorical terms in 2007 that France’s century-long pre-eminent place in the world of art world had been taken over by China. Many experts simply presumed it was nothing more than a blip! But her subsequent report commissioned by TEFAF stated otherwise, underlining the dominance of China.

Her new document courtesy TEFAF (The European Fine Art Foundation) pegs the auction sales in China at around 6 billion Euros in 2010, accounting for nearly 23 percent of the global art market. With a share of 34 percent, the US retained its top slot, whereas the UK with 22 percent slid to third position.

The TEFAF report elaborates: “New buyers and sellers from China and other emerging economies have helped to protect the art market from some of the downside risk it would have been subject to had it still been reliant primarily on the UK, US and other mature European markets.

"Looking forward, wealth and art buying remain highly concentrated in a very small fraction of China’s population, which is a strong indicator for the potential future growth in art sales. When the new middle classes come on stream at the end of this decade another boom in sales is likely and competition for share of this expanding market will intensify even more.”

In the past decades or so, the US, the UK, Germany and France have been the largest art markets. By 2006 China had almost overtaken Germany and France, in terms of auction sales, according to data of Artprice. However, China bucked the trend. In fact, the most noteworthy aspect of her study was the rise and expansion of the Chinese art market. Art sales in both mainland China and Hong Kong scaled a record peak of €4.2 billion (€3.8 billion in 2008), boosting the country’s share of the art market to 14% that year.

Tracing the art market trajectory

Dr Clare McAndrew, the brain behind the founder of Arts Economics, has authored 'The Global Art Market in 2010: Crisis & Recovery' report according to which China has replaced the UK as the second largest global art & antiques auction market. This significant loss of market share can directly be correlated to the highly impressive growth of the local Chinese art market that barely logged in any numbers worth reporting just about five years ago.

The first decade of the new millennium can be said to be a period of constant flux in the art marketplace. According to an estimate, it recorded a new peak in terms of business volumes and value in 2007. However, fortunes took a sudden twist. The next couple of years were filled with an atmosphere of panic and uncertainty marked by a steep decline in overall investor confidence and market value.

The wealth erosion strongly affected buying sentiment globally. After a period of eye-popping boom and subsequent bust, the astounding peak and the stupefying fall, the market started clawing its way back in late 2009, albeit with radically different contours of investing/ collecting, underpinned to a great extent by perceptible fundamental shifts in the mindset of major market players and also its hierarchy of power.

The art market found its feet and sprung back to life in mid 2010, to show its intrinsic strength. This spirit of resilience and recovery was largely driven by China, the US and India, to an extent. The process was hastened by strong spending power of Chinese and Indian art buyers. On the other hand, growth in Europe remained sluggish.

As a result, the distribution of wealth shifted eastwards evident in the number of HNIs (high net worth individuals) in Asia now almost equivalent to Europe, with a higher collective wealth. While the US and UK art markets were experiencing a period of gradual recovery, China continued to boom in 2010, establishing itself as the second largest market.