Musical Interlude

From the 1960's onwards, Husain painted a series of works that combined two of his favorite themes: music and the female form. Works from this series explored the relationship between the aesthetics of modern painting and those of classical Indian music and dance. These works are not so much representational paintings of female musicians as they are the artist's attempt to convert the three-dimensionality of sculptural forms onto a flat surface. In addition, certain gestures of the arms and hands convey definite meanings in traditional Indian art and dance, and the artist often alludes to these mudras in his paintings.

"He [Husain] has tuned himself into the disciplines of several arts. The vibrations of dance, music and Urdu poetry are caught in a jagged thrust of lines and colors. He can draw and paint with complete surrender to the sound and graphic representations of these modes. Musical rhythm or pure sound finds its way easily into the schemes of the paintings." (R. Shahani, Let History Cut Across Me without Me, New Delhi, 1993, p.1.)