Kattingeri Krishna Hebbar (1911 - 1996)

overall in good condition, very minor areas of cracquelure to areas of thick white impasto, colours less saturated in reality, as viewed
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.

One of India's earliest modern artists, K. K. Hebbar was trained as a classic academic painter. However throughout his career he experimented with a gamut of styles spanning indigenous folk traditions to Western Modernism in his quest to formulate a personal idiom that encapsulated not merely a visual but also a sensory response to his subjects and surroundings.

'From the very beginning of my life as a painter it has been my aim to be able to express my joys and sorrows through color and line as freely as a child expresses hunger by crying or its joy by laughter. For this purpose I had to learn the vocabulary of art and also to draw sustenance from the vast treasure accumulated from the past and practised at present all over the world.' (K.K. Hebbar, Voyage in Images, Mumbai, 1991, introduction).

Hebbar's paintings demonstrate an individualistic sensibility that stemmed from an acute observation of social realities. As he stated, 'An artist should watch everyday life and politics very closely, but he should never express his feelings too obviously and take sides with politics expressively.' His deep concern for the plight of the common man is clearly reflected in many of his works as in the present lot. The spare emaciated frame of the water carrier paints a stark picture of the poor in India and belies the artist's sympathy for the struggle of the faceless millions eking out an existence in India's towns and villages.