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Lot 45

 

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a) Laxman Pai (1926-2021)
Untitled, Signed in Devnagari, inscribed, signed and dated 'Amicalement to/ Rudy/ Laxman Pai/ New- Delhi 7-4-68' (lower right), 1968, Pen and ink on paper pasted on card paper, 11 x 7.75 in (28 x 20 cm)

b) Pilloo Pochkhanawala (1923-1986)
Untitled, Inscribed and signed 'To Rudy/ from/ Pilloo Pochkhanwala', (lower right), Felt tip pen on paper pasted on card paper, 10.75 x 8 in (27 x 20.5... a) Laxman Pai (1926-2021)
Untitled, Signed in Devnagari, inscribed, signed and dated 'Amicalement to/ Rudy/ Laxman Pai/ New- Delhi 7-4-68' (lower right), 1968, Pen and ink on paper pasted on card paper, 11 x 7.75 in (28 x 20 cm)

b) Pilloo Pochkhanawala (1923-1986)
Untitled, Inscribed and signed 'To Rudy/ from/ Pilloo Pochkhanwala', (lower right), Felt tip pen on paper pasted on card paper, 10.75 x 8 in (27 x 20.5 cm)

c) S B Palsikar (1917-1984)
Untitled, Signed and dated 'Paliskar/ 68' (lower left), 1968, Oil and fevicol on canvas board, 14.75 x 10.75 in (37.5 x 27.5 cm)

d) Satish Gujral (1925-2020)
Untitled, Signed in Devnagari and dated '68' (centre left), 1968, Pen and ink and watercolour on paper pasted on board, 8.75 x 11.5 in (22 x 29.5 cm)

e) S H Raza (1922-2016)
Landscaped Self Portrait, Signed and dated 'RAZA '68' (upper right), inscribed and signed 'Landscaped Self Portrait - For Rudi with affection - RAZA' (along the lower edge), 1968, Ink on paper pasted on mount board, 10.5 x 8.25 in (26.5 x 21 cm)

f) Farokh Mulla
Untitled, Signed and dated 'FarokhMulla/ April 1968' (lower right) and inscribed To/ Dear Rudy/ from/ Farokh/ I wonder if my impression of me meets your ideas of what i am and what i look like - surely not!' (on the reverse), 1968, Watercolour on paper, 10.75 x 7.5 in (27 x 19 cm)

g) K H Ara (1914-1985)
Untitled, Signed and dated 'K. H ARA/ 15-4-1968' (lower right), 1968, Pen on paper pasted on card paper, 12.5 x 9.25 in (32 x 23.5 cm)

h) V S Gaitonde (1924-2001)
Untitled, Signed and dated in Devnagari (lower right), 1968, Marker on paper pasted on card paper, 12.75 x 9.25 in (32.5 x 23.5 cm)

i) Prabhakar Barwe (1936-1995)
Untitled, Inscribed in Devnagari (centre left) and signed and dated in Devnagari (lower centre), 1968, Watercolour and pen and ink on paper pasted on card paper, 8.75 x 8.5 in (22 x 21.5 cm)

j) Badri Narayan (1929-2013)
Untitled, Initialled and inscribed in Devnagari (lower right) and signed and dated 'Badri Narayan 1968' (lower left), 1968, Acrylic, pencil and pen on paper pasted on card paper, 12.5 x 9.5 in (31.5 x 24 cm)

k) Prafulla Dahanukar (1934-2014)
Untitled, Signed and dated in Devnagari (lower right), 1968, Felt tip pen on paper pasted on card paper, 13 x 8.75 in (33 x 22 cm)

l) Naren Panchal (1936-2007)
Untitled, Inscribed 'NAREN' and signed and dated in Devnagari (lower right), 1968, Colour pencil, felt tip pen and burnt paper on paper pasted on card paper, 11.5 x 8.75 in (29 x 22.5 cm)

m) P T Reddy (1915-1996)
Untitled, Signed and dated 'P.T. Reddy/ 16.4.1968' (lower right), 1968, Pen and ink on paper pasted on card paper, 11 x 8.75 in (28 x 22.5 cm)

n) J Sultan Ali (1920-1990)
Untitled, Signed in Devnagari and signed again 'Sultan Ali' (lower left) and dated '1968' (lower right), 1968, Pen and pencil on paper pasted on card paper, 10.75 x 9.5 in (27.5 x 24 cm)

o) A A Raiba (1922-2016)
Clown Unmasked, Inscribed and dated ''Clown unmasked'/ as the self-portrait of/ a.a. Raiba I.68' (lower left), 1968, Acrylic and pastel on linen pasted on card paper, 11 x 7.75 in (28 x 20 cm)

p) Ambadas Khobragade (1922-2012)
Untitled, Signed and dated 'Ambadas/ May 1968' (lower right), 1968, Watercolour and ink on paper pasted on card paper, 11.5 x 9.25 in (28.5 x 23.5 cm)

q) Homi Patel (1928-2004)
Untitled, Signed and dated 'Homi/ 68' (lower right), 1968, Felt tip pen on paper pasted on card paper, 11.5 x 8.75 in (28.5 x 22.5 cm)

r) A A Almelkar (1920-1982)
Untitled, Signed and dated 'A A ALMELKAR 68' (lower right), 1968, Watercolour and ink on mount board pasted on card paper, 12 x 8.5 in (31 x 21.5 cm)

s) Satish Panchal (b. 1935)
Untitled, Signed and dated in Devnagari (lower right), Pen on tracing paper pasted on paper further pasted on card paper, 12 x 7.75 in (30.5 X 20 cm)

t) Gautam Vaghela (1936-2010)
Untitled, Gouache and pen and ink on paper pasted on card paper, 8.75 x 7.75 in (22.5 x 20 cm)

u) Janine Mongillat (1929-2002)
Untitled, Signed 'Mongillat' (lower left), Collage on jute pasted on card paper, 8.5 x 6 in (21.5 x 15.5 cm)

v) Bal Chhabda (1923-2013)
Untitled, Inscribed in Devnagari (upper left) signed and dated 'Bal 68' (lower right); inscribed (on the reverse), 1968, Pencil on paper, 8.5 x 10.75 in (21 x 27.5 cm)


The present lot is a series of self-portraits by prominent modern Indian artists, including S H Raza, Akbar Padamsee, and V S Gaitonde, created as a parting gift for their patron and friend Rudolf von Leyden before he left India for Europe in 1968, “a gesture that symbolised how he helped them see themselves.” (Reema Desai Gehi, “Au Revoir Bombay,” The Catalyst: Rudolf von Leyden and India’s Artistic Awakening, New Delhi: Speaking Tiger Books, 2024, p. 138) Born in Germany in 1908, Leyden earned a doctorate in geology before moving to Bombay in 1933 where he spent 35 years pursuing a career in the arts. He set up the Leyden Commercial Art Studio, under which he established himself as an advertising and publicity professional. He became a central figure in the city’s art scene, working as an art critic for the Times of India, a contributing editor of MARG from 1946, and as an advisor to the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) for the commission and acquisition of artworks. He also drew political cartoons for The Illustrated Weekly of India under the nom de plume, Denley.

As a critic and collector, Leyden was instrumental in promoting young artists in post-Independence India, including members of the Progressive Artists’ Group such as S H Raza and K H Ara, whom he was particularly fond of. Alongside art connoisseurs Walter and Käthe Langhammer, Emmanuel Schlesinger, Kekoo Gandhy, and Mulk Raj Anand, his influence on modern Indian art was immense. Art historian Yashodhara Dalmia remarks, “[Leyden’s] reviews, as well as his lectures on art which he gave at the Bombay Art Society and other places, cover three decades of modern art and reflect its changes over a crucial period when its entire nature was being altered. It would not be an exaggeration to say that he virtually steered the course of modern Indian art, with his writings and criticism, in its formative years.” (Yashodhara Dalmia, “The Banquet Years,” The Making of Modern Indian Art, New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2001, p. 62)

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