Important Notice

Named Guldasta, the Urdu word for "bouquet", Subodh Gupta's installation offers an ironical interpretation of the cultural connotations of flower arrangements. Bouquets have adorned homes and public spaces since the 3rd millennium BC, and continue to be presented as gifts to mark special occasions. Each flower is selected for its colour and fragrance, and also for its symbolism. Flower arrangements have also been a popular subject of... Named Guldasta, the Urdu word for "bouquet", Subodh Gupta's installation offers an ironical interpretation of the cultural connotations of flower arrangements. Bouquets have adorned homes and public spaces since the 3rd millennium BC, and continue to be presented as gifts to mark special occasions. Each flower is selected for its colour and fragrance, and also for its symbolism. Flower arrangements have also been a popular subject of still-lifes since the 17th century. The subject thus has a demonstrated history of appeal to a particular kind of sensibility.

Gupta's "bouquet," however, is an assortment of flat and round stainless steel ladles arranged in a bucket. He supplants the refined aesthetics of a flower bouquet and instead celebrates the mundane aesthetics of ordinary, everyday life. In doing so, Gupta establishes continuity with Marcel Duchamp's notion of the "readymades," where objects are stripped of their functionality. In elevating the humble kitchen tools found in every Indian kitchen, into the realm of art, Gupta uses the formal language of art to create a dialogue about commoditisation and value.

Gupta's large and small-scale sculptures are composed of both, used and new utensils, and have been shown worldwide. In a 2016 interview, Gupta stated, "With the brand new, shiny, stainless steel utensils there's always a bit of tension and deception, they are attractive and sparkling yet cold and empty." (Christina Chua, "An Interview with Subodh Gupta," The Artling, 24 November 2016, online) The present lot embodies this disconnect even more with its intriguing title.

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