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M Reddeppa Naidu
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"In my search for identity and roots --- an identity that is free of Western
impact --- I have turned to mythology. I wanted to paint on subjects that
belong to me and were a direct source of inspiration."
Born in 1932 in the East Godavari district, Andhra Pradesh, Redeppa Naidu
attended the Madras College of Arts and Crafts and had the benefit of the
best art education that the institution could offer in the mid-twentieth...
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"In my search for identity and roots --- an identity that is free of Western
impact --- I have turned to mythology. I wanted to paint on subjects that
belong to me and were a direct source of inspiration."
Born in 1932 in the East Godavari district, Andhra Pradesh, Redeppa Naidu
attended the Madras College of Arts and Crafts and had the benefit of the
best art education that the institution could offer in the mid-twentieth
century.
Indian artists, in that era, were quite obsessed with Parisian modernism.
But Naidu says that the great European experiment did not really influence
his works. "I was not quite acquainted with impressionism, expressionism or
cubism. If it was pointed out that my work was impressionistic, I could not
comprehend how it could be so," he adds. "Such comparison, in a way, also
upsets me."
The 50s, when Naidu began his career as an artist, was also the time of
struggle for Indian artists to receive recognition from within the country.
Patronage came mostly from foreign embassies that purchased their paintings
and sponsored exhibitions.
In several of his works, Naidu has painted with palette knife on canvas,
using pastel shades. But mostly, he prefers the medium of oils on
fine-grained canvas. Interestingly, somewhere in the 60s, Naidu claimed that
his paintings, at some level, ran against his grain. "Perhaps the academic
approach of the school I studied in, and the challenge of the search for my
own self, made me seek images to match the sensations of urban world," he
explains.
He moved on from painting too much of naturalistic modeling to a linear and
cubistic approach. He painted several architectural structures and settings,
and assimilated amazing amount details in them. For instance, Naidu painted
a lot of churches, and his canvas depicted spires rising into the space
above.Somewhere in the 70s, Naidu also turned his back to Western impressionism
style of art, and brought in a lot of Indian motifs and styles, like the
miniature style, into his works. At this critical juncture, the artist whose
works had always defied any convention or conformism to category and place
went his own way.
He sourced his images and inspiration from the world around him. He made a
beginning with Indian icons, which he saw everywhere. He drew a lot from
Indian mythology and temples. From the roadside temples, for instance, he
took the images of Durga sitting on lion. "This was the first painting I did
in the series titled 'Deity'," says Naidu. "The second being the image of
Lord Venkateshwara in Tirupati." Interestingly, it was one of Naidu's Muslim friends who pointed out the icon to him. "He told me that he had not seen a more interesting icon that," he recalls.
His fascination with Indian icons continued for almost two decades. "I
decided to go deeper into the subject," claims Naidu, "and after reading the
epics and puranas, to which less religious forms are related, I made up my
mind to paint more and more of these, while freeing myself from all their
earlier contexts and achieving a purely aesthetic expression."
Besides Durga and Vekateshwara, he also extensively painted Ganesha, since
he feels that "painting Ganesh is like praying." Every one of his Lord
Ganesh images is different; it varies in form and color. Naidu believes
that the elephant headed God as a form is inexhaustible and requires a
lifetime involvement in various mediums and aspects.
According to his mentor K C S Pankiar, "Naidu's line play is a sensuous
rhythm on the canvas, carrying with it a strange awareness of the lyrical
form as wedded to space and picture plane. His colors, caught in the sieve
of his lines, gleam and sparkle with dignity.
Linear patterns characterize most of Naidu's works. He brought the art of
figurative painting to a pinnacle. The lines of his drawings, light and
uneven, done with a dry brush, are characteristic of his style. While his
lines are free and fluid, the color tones in his works are soft and fresh.
The artist held his first exhibition in 1958 in Chennai.
He passed away in 1999.
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Born
1932
Died
1999
Education
1955 -60 Diploma in Fine Arts, Government College of Art and Craft, Chennai
Exhibitions
Selected Posthumous Exhibitions
2010 'Manifestations IV', Delhi...
Selected Posthumous Exhibitions
2010 'Manifestations IV', Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi
2008-09 'Paz Mandala', Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi
2008 'Moderns', Royal Cultural Centre, Amman, Jordan organized by Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi in collaboration with Embassy of India, Amman, Jordan
2005 'Manifestations III', organized by Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi at Mumbai and New Delhi
2004 'Manifestations II', organized by Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi at Mumbai and New Delhi
2010 'Manifestations', organized by Delhi Art Gallery, New Delhi at Mumbai and New Delhi
Selected Solo Exhibitions
1989 'Retrospective', The Grindlay's Art Gallery and The Gallery, Chennai
1974 'Mahabharta Paintings', Ashoka Art Gallery, New Delhi
1972 Diety Series, Aparna Art Gallery, Bangalore
1969 'Retrospective:1956-69', Oxford House, Chennai
Selected Group Exhibitions
1996 'Madras an Emotion-1996', organized by Values Art Foundation, Chennai
1983 Organized by Mahindra and Mahindra at Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai
1977 CP Art Centre, Chennai
1967 Contemporary Indian Art Exhibition., London and other parts of Europe
1966 Kala Bhavan, Hyderabad
1977 Mayur Art Gallery, Chennai
1964 Anita Pavillion, Hyderabad
1958 Ortacamund, Chennai
Participations
1989 The Nehru Centenary Exhibition on Nature and Enviornment, organized by Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi
1978 4th Triennale India, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi
1979 IV Biennale, Paris
1973 23 Years of Indian Art Exhibition, New Delhi
1971 Sao Paulo Biennale, Brazil
1969 Sao Paulo Biennale, Brazil
1965 Paris Biennale, Paris
Honours and Awards
1968 First Prize of all India Art Exhibition, Ernakulem
1967 Gold...
1968 First Prize of all India Art Exhibition, Ernakulem
1967 Gold Medal, Hyderabad Art Society
1967 Academy of Fine Arts Academy, Kolkota
1965 Madras State Lalit Kala Academy Award
1963,65,66,69,71 Andhra Pradesh Lalit Kala Academy Award
1962 National Award presented by the Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi
1961 Bombay and Hyderabad Art Society's Price
1960-62 Cultural Scholarship in Painting from Government of India
1958 South Indian Society of Painters Award
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PAST AUCTIONS
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PAST StoryLTD AUCTIONS
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Lot 4
Details
Absolute Tuesdays
22 September 2020
Untitled
Oil on canvas
23.5 x 21.5 in
Winning bid
$2,820
Rs 2,04,450
(Inclusive of buyer's premium)
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