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Descriptif du lot
In The Pull, painted in 1987, K.K. Hebbar hovers effortlessly between abstraction and representation. In the later years of his life Hebbar increasingly turned to near-abstraction, painting several heavily patterned and textured scenes like the present lot. As his biographer Veena K Thimmaiah noted, “His abstraction is distilled from nature into a clarity of form and texture that culminates in a grand simplicity of colour and design. At his peak he mastered the art of separating the superfluous from the essential” (V.K.Thimmaiah, K. K. Hebbar: An Artist’s Quest, Bangalore, 2011, p. 31).
In 1990, only a few years after the present lot was painted, Hebbar discussed the evolution of his practice, linking his turn to abstraction with a new engagement with ‘Energy’ and his exploration of the Universe through its five basic elements. “I consider Energy to be an all-pervading force with various manifestations. It was while I was contemplating on Energy, that I felt an urge to portray symbolically the five elements which are the sources of Energy – Earth (Prithvi), Water (Jal), Fire (Agni), Wind (Vayu), and Ether (Akash). Works relevant to this period are ‘Energy’ and ‘Surging Form’. While conceiving and executing these works, I made simultaneous use of my intuition, intellect and emotion” (Artist statement, Voyage in Images, Bombay, 1990, unpaginated).
The Pull, while abstracted, suggests a shoreline, with sea water drawn up through a narrow channel onto a beach. The blue upper field resembles water lapping at the seashore, while the pale, densely textured lower field suggests the sandy earth. The tapering central form creates a powerful directional tension between the two distinct areas, as if manifesting a tidal, gravitational or magnetic attraction between water and earth. In a sense, water, earth, wind and, of course, energy are all present in this painting.
In 1990, only a few years after the present lot was painted, Hebbar discussed the evolution of his practice, linking his turn to abstraction with a new engagement with ‘Energy’ and his exploration of the Universe through its five basic elements. “I consider Energy to be an all-pervading force with various manifestations. It was while I was contemplating on Energy, that I felt an urge to portray symbolically the five elements which are the sources of Energy – Earth (Prithvi), Water (Jal), Fire (Agni), Wind (Vayu), and Ether (Akash). Works relevant to this period are ‘Energy’ and ‘Surging Form’. While conceiving and executing these works, I made simultaneous use of my intuition, intellect and emotion” (Artist statement, Voyage in Images, Bombay, 1990, unpaginated).
The Pull, while abstracted, suggests a shoreline, with sea water drawn up through a narrow channel onto a beach. The blue upper field resembles water lapping at the seashore, while the pale, densely textured lower field suggests the sandy earth. The tapering central form creates a powerful directional tension between the two distinct areas, as if manifesting a tidal, gravitational or magnetic attraction between water and earth. In a sense, water, earth, wind and, of course, energy are all present in this painting.