Nude V

After the 1970's and early 1980's where the landscape dominated Padamsee's canvases, the mid eighties saw the return of the figure to his works. Although the reappearance of figures make these works distinct from his metascapes, there is a sense of continuity prevalent in his treatment of space and use of color. As with Padamsee's earlier phase of figurative painting, his figures appear vulnerable and alone. Ella Datta states, "Padamsee draws his figures and forms from the world around him that he knows intimately, but he invests them with a profound sense of alienation. They are not heroic creatures, nor are they angst-ridden, shattered beings. They exist, and on their flesh and bones is stamped the experience of living." (Ella Datta, Akbar Padamsee: The Spirit of Order, New Delhi, Art Heritage, 1989)