Important Notice

“Art has always been a combination of Indian literature, music, dance and architectural traditions.” - M F HUSAIN

M F Husain is perhaps among India's most prolific modern artists whose unique visual idiom left an indelible mark on the history of Indian art. A largely self-taught artist, he began his career painting cinema billboards and then making toys, before joining the Progressive Artists' Group in 1947. Constantly fascinated... “Art has always been a combination of Indian literature, music, dance and architectural traditions.” - M F HUSAIN

M F Husain is perhaps among India's most prolific modern artists whose unique visual idiom left an indelible mark on the history of Indian art. A largely self-taught artist, he began his career painting cinema billboards and then making toys, before joining the Progressive Artists' Group in 1947. Constantly fascinated by history, civilisation, and the heroic epic, Husain's art broke from tradition and the rigidity of academic painting styles, while never losing sight of the artistic heritage, energy, and rhythm of the vast Indian landscape.

During his formative period, right after Independence, Husain travelled extensively, assimilating the techniques, colours, and styles of Jain and Basohli painting, the sensuous forms of Mathura sculpture, and the energy and fluid lines of Chinese calligraphy. Additionally, his encounter with the works of European modern masters including Paul Klee, Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, and Amedeo Modigliani helped him hone his own intuitions and perceptions regarding colour, form, line, and symbolism. He described the impact of this assimilation on his work as an experience that "was humbling. I came back to Bombay and in '48, I came out with five paintings, which was the turning point in my life. 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 Basohli period, the strong colours of the Basohli miniatures. The last was the folk element. With these three combined and using colours very boldly as I did with cinema hoardings, I went to town. That was the breaking point... to come out of the influence of the British academic painting and the Bengal Revivalist School." (Artist quoted in Pritish Nandy ed., The Illustrated Weekly of India, 4 - 10 December 1983, online)

It was in the late 1960s that Husain, motivated by a desire to rediscover his Indian roots, turned towards what would remain one of his major sources of inspiration throughout his long career. He began creating paintings of gods and goddesses from the Hindu pantheon as well as scenes from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata in an attempt to make them "speak again in the light of recent Indian history and contemporary Indian geo-political life." (Dr Daniel Herwitz, Husain, Bombay: Tata Steel, 1988, p. 22)

Writer K Bikram Singh attributes Husain's unique stylistic approach to the perception of gods as being either accessible or distant, according to their position in the hierarchy of the pantheon. "As a person and as an artist, Husain sees faith and spirituality as an extension of humanism and iconic images for him represent the 'divinity of man' that has expressed itself in a variety of representations in our world." (K Bikram Singh, Maqbool Fida Husain, New Delhi: Rahul & Art, 2008, p. 168)

The present lot is a monumental oil on board depicting Airavata on the left half. There are multiple legends around Airavata in Hindu mythology. According to the Ramayana, Airavata is the white elephant that acts as the god Indra's chariot. He possesses four tusks and seven trunks and is believed to be the king of all elephants. The Matanga Lila, a Sanskrit treatise dealing with the life and behaviour patterns of elephants, states that Airavata was born when Brahma sang sacred hymns over the halves of the eggshell that birthed Garuda, a Hindu demigod. He is also believed to have the power of producing clouds, thus bringing rain and respite in times of drought. In fact, this is highlighted in one legend that mentions Indra riding on Airavata in his victorious battle against Vritra, a demon personifying drought.

According to another legend, Airavata is believed to have emerged during the churning of the ocean of milk. He stands guard at the entrance of Svarga, Indra's palace, and at one of the eight points of the compass. He is believed to play a critical role in the defence and protection of his quarter. He is also a part of Jain tradition where it is said that the birth of a Tirthankara on earth leads to a celebratory visit by Indra with his consort Shachi riding their great elephant Airavata.

Husain makes use of heavy impasto and thick gestural brushstrokes to emphasise Airavata and the other figures on the board. He also uses colour to divide the picture plane into areas of light and dark, less for the sake of achieving a chiaroscuro effect than to powerfully draw attention to the figure and the elephant. What emerges is a feeling of power, allowing the work to almost pulsate with life.

The essence of the present lot, as well as other similar works by the artist, is encapsulated by Shiv S Kapur: "While his paintings do have an immediate social context, the essential concern of his art is archetypal: it explores the parables of life, love and death. The figures in his groups are for the most part given personal, not social, relationships. Each comes robed in its own solitary identity, the structure of the grouping accentuating the monumental character of the individual figure... The way to seek an identity with such a world is through magic, in forms of intuitive ambiguity." (Richard Bartholomew and Shiv S Kapur, Husain, New York: Harry N Abrams, Inc., 1972, p. 58)

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