.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
“Where are those lips? Where are those caresses? Where is her seamless love? Her purity? Where is the fountain, the springwell, the gush, the lava of her love erupting from every pore? Perhaps the embers of her love remain unextinguished within her child today. He is restless, continues to look for her everywhere. But where, where, where?” (Artist statement, K. Mohamed, M.F. Husain, Where Art Thou, Mumbai, 2002, p. 14).
The woman, the mother, the timeless feminine form hidden in both memory and longing is a theme Maqbool Fida Husain constantly returned to in his work. The present lot embodies the ambiguity and mystery of the artist’s recollections and yearning; however, it also addresses the way in which Husain saw the female form “as an embodiment of womanhood, of purity and strength” (K. Mohamed, Ibid., Mumbai, 2002, p. xxx). Through his painted figures, Husain moves beyond a mere expression of sentiment to show his admiration for women at the most basic levels of society who often predominate in village and home affairs, both sacred and secular.
Here, Husain portrays four female figures against a stark, earthy background. The figure on the left is the most abstracted of the three, yet also seems to be the focus of the painting. Portrayed in profile, her facial features are visible only at the edges of her red silhouette. Outlined by the stiff yellow edges of her clothes, this figure evokes a sense of certainty or authority in a coterie which otherwise seems unsure and apprehensive. Husain has titled this painting A Question, and this matriarchal figure’s almost glowing outstretched hand in a variation of the gyana mudra, a gesture that denotes knowledge and wisdom, perhaps signifies she is providing an answer or way forward for three women seeking her guidance.
Of the three other figures, the woman in the center is the most prominent, holding her head in confusion. Her shadowy companions flank and comfort her as they all await a solution to the unknown conundrum that they face. In his characteristic style, Husain only hints at their facial features using simple lines and different colored highlights to suggest noses and lips. Each woman in the painting commands the viewer’s gaze with a unique and enigmatic presence, turning viewers into voyeurs attempting to decipher the silent conversation unfolding before them.
While Husain’s subjects enjoy a degree of featureless anonymity, their identity is defined by the relationships and spaces they share. In the present lot, Husain is not offering his viewers the image of a social meeting in an ambiguous setting. It is, instead, an intimate portrayal of female friendship, strength, protection and guidance. One of the experiences that led the artist to such portrayals was the early loss of his mother, when he was too young to remember her face. In paintings like the present lot, Husain gives his mother and the universal concept of Mother form in the figure of a strong woman guiding and caring for others.
The woman, the mother, the timeless feminine form hidden in both memory and longing is a theme Maqbool Fida Husain constantly returned to in his work. The present lot embodies the ambiguity and mystery of the artist’s recollections and yearning; however, it also addresses the way in which Husain saw the female form “as an embodiment of womanhood, of purity and strength” (K. Mohamed, Ibid., Mumbai, 2002, p. xxx). Through his painted figures, Husain moves beyond a mere expression of sentiment to show his admiration for women at the most basic levels of society who often predominate in village and home affairs, both sacred and secular.
Here, Husain portrays four female figures against a stark, earthy background. The figure on the left is the most abstracted of the three, yet also seems to be the focus of the painting. Portrayed in profile, her facial features are visible only at the edges of her red silhouette. Outlined by the stiff yellow edges of her clothes, this figure evokes a sense of certainty or authority in a coterie which otherwise seems unsure and apprehensive. Husain has titled this painting A Question, and this matriarchal figure’s almost glowing outstretched hand in a variation of the gyana mudra, a gesture that denotes knowledge and wisdom, perhaps signifies she is providing an answer or way forward for three women seeking her guidance.
Of the three other figures, the woman in the center is the most prominent, holding her head in confusion. Her shadowy companions flank and comfort her as they all await a solution to the unknown conundrum that they face. In his characteristic style, Husain only hints at their facial features using simple lines and different colored highlights to suggest noses and lips. Each woman in the painting commands the viewer’s gaze with a unique and enigmatic presence, turning viewers into voyeurs attempting to decipher the silent conversation unfolding before them.
While Husain’s subjects enjoy a degree of featureless anonymity, their identity is defined by the relationships and spaces they share. In the present lot, Husain is not offering his viewers the image of a social meeting in an ambiguous setting. It is, instead, an intimate portrayal of female friendship, strength, protection and guidance. One of the experiences that led the artist to such portrayals was the early loss of his mother, when he was too young to remember her face. In paintings like the present lot, Husain gives his mother and the universal concept of Mother form in the figure of a strong woman guiding and caring for others.