Important Notice

Amrita Sher-Gil was raised in a culturally rich environment that keenly nurtured her interests. From the age of five, she displayed a natural inclination for drawing and painting, showcasing a remarkable talent for keen observation. Sher-Gil diligently maintained a journal filled with meticulous records of her curious discoveries accompanied by brightly coloured sketches. Additionally, her mother, Marie Antoinette, enriched her imagination with... Amrita Sher-Gil was raised in a culturally rich environment that keenly nurtured her interests. From the age of five, she displayed a natural inclination for drawing and painting, showcasing a remarkable talent for keen observation. Sher-Gil diligently maintained a journal filled with meticulous records of her curious discoveries accompanied by brightly coloured sketches. Additionally, her mother, Marie Antoinette, enriched her imagination with Hungarian fairy tales and folk stories, which Sher-Gil would illustrate as well. “The Hungarian countryside [where she spent the first eight years of her life], its feudal castles, the peasants in their big coats embroidered with bright colours and their houses decorated with bold bright designs made a strong visual impression on her.” (Vivan Sundaram, “Amrita Sher-Gil: Life and Work,” Amrita Sher-Gil, Bombay: Marg Publications, 1972, p. 6)

In 1921, the Sher-Gil family moved to Shimla from Budapest, Hungary, where she was born. Sher-Gil developed a fondness for books, favouring them over toys. They captivated her and filled her with a wealth of creativity. She painted tirelessly, immersed herself in books, played the piano, and crafted her own compelling stories and poems. From the age of 8 to 16, she honed her skills with watercolours, her primary medium at the time. During her time in Shimla, Major Whitemarsh was appointed as her art instructor and laid utmost importance on achieving accurate likeness. This transformative period laid the foundation for the extraordinary artist she would become.

The present lot 14, among innumerable sketches, reveals Sher-Gil’s bias towards women as subjects, depicted as bold and solitary beings, since a young age. As artist and writer Vivan Sundaram observes, “The drawings and water colours Sher-Gil did between the ages of eleven and fourteen (1924 to 1927) are related to a growing awareness of herself. By 1927 Sher-Gil had been in India for six years, yet the people and landscape in her drawings and paintings are entirely European. In her earlier work she draws with a thin tremulous line, wistful maidens naked and lost in forests. Later her characters (and here a strong influence of books and films manifests itself) and the women in particular are shown with their faces tense with suppressed emotion, either attempting suicide or threatening to stab the men they are with.” (Sundaram, p. 9)

These early works offer a glimpse into Sher-Gil’s formative years, showcasing her vivid observations and unfiltered imagination. While lots 14 and 16 express her interpretations of fantasies and fairy tales, lot 15 stands as a testament to her maturing skills in landscape studies. Possibly executed in her adolescence, lot 15 showcases her attempt to capture depth, light and perspective. While Sher-Gil preferred figurative painting, she painted landscapes for practice, demonstrating her dedication to refining her artistic skills.

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