Lot 36
  • 36

JAGDISH SWAMINATHAN | Untitled (Bird and Rock over Mountain)

Estimate
60,000 - 80,000 USD
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Description

  • Jagdish Swaminathan
  • Untitled (Bird and Rock over Mountain)
  • Signed and dated in Devanagari and 'J. Swaminathan / further signed '86' on reverse 
  • Oil on canvas 
  • 30⅛ x 20¼ in. (76.3 x 51.4 cm.)
  • Painted in 1986

Provenance

Dhoomimal Gallery, New Delhi
Private Collection of Dr. O. Jayaram, New Delhi
Acquired from the above in late 1980s

Exhibited

New Delhi, Dhoomimal Gallery, Exhibition of Paintings by J. Swaminathan, April 1986

Condition

Slight frame abrasions with minor associated losses are present around the edges. There is very minor wear and discoloration notable along the lower edge as well. A speck of white paint in the yellow pigment in the upper right quadrant appears inherent. Light surface abrasions and losses to the varnish are present in the red paint at the bottom which would benefit from some minor restoration. This work is in good condition as viewed. The colors are brighter in reality.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Catalogue Note

Jagdish Swaminathan’s conceptual landscapes speak to the artist's devotion to nature. His work is remarkable for its overarching sense of order and calm, qualities which are palpable even in the present painting. The iconography belongs to Swaminathan’s popular 'Bird, Tree and Mountain' series, a configuration that is repeated in various iterations throughout the artist's oeuvre after it first appeared in the 1960s.  The small scale depiction of the birds in this work creates the illusion of scale, suggesting that this is in fact a magnified view of a miniature landscape. As is typical of Swaminathan's style, the canvas is divided into bright color fields, in this case, shades of burgundy, yellow and, green, borrowed from the indigenous aesthetic of Indian miniature paintings. As noted by Geeta Kapur, Swaminathan developed his visual language 'on the basis of Indian tradition which offers a vast variety of the subtlest most brilliant hues in its art forms' (G. Kapur, Contemporary Indian Artists, Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, 1978, p. 210)

In the 1960s, after leaving his career as a journalist, Swaminathan set out to pursue painting full-time. With eleven like-minded artists, he established Group 1890. This collective considered naturalism to be vulgar; they rejected the pastoral idealism of the Bengal School, the hybrid modernisms of the Western-facing Progressive School. Instead, they believed that artists ought to take inspiration from the natural world to create symbolic and abstracted forms. This process was revelatory, and Swaminathan devoted himself to developing an art that was quintessentially Indian, ultimately succeeding in his project to 'establish a continuum between folk, tribal and urban contemporary art.' (A. Jhaveri, A Guide to 101 Modern and Contemporary Indian Artists, India Book House Pvt Ltd., Mumbai, 2005, p. 93)