Important Notice

Lot 119

This piece is part of a series of paintings on paper from 1965 that stand out from the rest of Souza`s oeuvre on stylistic grounds. Rather than the thick, aggressive lines that Souza is well-known for, this piece demonstrates something akin to restraint in its precise execution. From the curls of the dancer`s hair to the straps of her shoes and the lettering in the background, not one drop of the bright paint is out of place. Each element of the... This piece is part of a series of paintings on paper from 1965 that stand out from the rest of Souza`s oeuvre on stylistic grounds. Rather than the thick, aggressive lines that Souza is well-known for, this piece demonstrates something akin to restraint in its precise execution. From the curls of the dancer`s hair to the straps of her shoes and the lettering in the background, not one drop of the bright paint is out of place. Each element of the painting fits with the others in a very careful orchestration of the whole. Nevertheless, the subject of this 1965 piece is a familiar one in Souza`s oeuvre, the female nude. Here, a cabaret dancer on stage flamboyantly displays her sexuality for all to see.

Similarly, the objective of the present lot is also recognizable in its flouting of moral conventions. Irreverence and immodesty were the tools Souza used in his art to lash out against the social mores and institutions that he saw as inflexible and hypocritical. Prominent amongst these was the Catholic Church that played a large role in his life during his early years in India. The primary vehicle of the artist`s derision of the Church was the female nude. In 1992, he published an article in Debonair magazine titled “Naked Women and Religion”, in which he explains, “As a Roman Catholic youth, born in Goa, I was familiar with priests bellowing sermons from pulpits against `sex` and `immodesty` particularly addressed to women, making them stricken with guilt. The Catholic men stood cocky in their suits and ties agreeing with the priests, lusting for naked women inwardly. Hypocrites!” (Yashodhara Dalmia, The Making of Modern Indian Art: The Progressives, 2001, p. 92).

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