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Lot 26

 

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Painted in 1953, the present lot is a significant work that is poised at a pivotal moment in Gaitonde's oeuvre, when "the need to establish a meaningful relationship between line and painted surface," according to critic Dnyaneshwar Nadkarni, was one of the artist's primary concerns. Gaitonde's work underwent a critical transformation in the 1950s, when he turned from the purely figurative, towards abstraction. Early on this journey, he... Painted in 1953, the present lot is a significant work that is poised at a pivotal moment in Gaitonde's oeuvre, when "the need to establish a meaningful relationship between line and painted surface," according to critic Dnyaneshwar Nadkarni, was one of the artist's primary concerns. Gaitonde's work underwent a critical transformation in the 1950s, when he turned from the purely figurative, towards abstraction. Early on this journey, he encountered the work and writings of Swiss German artist Paul Klee. Klee employed multiple techniques and mixed media in his art, including watercolours, and created luminous works which deeply impacted Gaitonde's own aesthetics. "Alongside Gaitonde's early inspiration from the traditions of Indian painting, the artist also adopted Paul Klee's expressiveness of line, color harmonies, and playfulness of spirit as evidenced in various works from the 1950s." (Sandhini Poddar, "Polyphonic Modernisms and Gaitonde's Interiorized Worldview," V.S. Gaitonde: Painting as Process, Painting as Life, New York: The Solomon R Guggenheim Museum, 2014, p. 20) This spirit of lightness is visible in the present lot.

Writing of Gaitonde's works between 1952 and 1954, Meera Menezes states, "The richness of the background, whether in watercolours or tempers, now forms a perfect foil to the finely delineated geometrical shapes that populate his works. Circles, crescents, triangles and rectangles speak of the newfound love of all things geometrical." (Menezes, p. 81) The present lot contains the germs of the abstractions and deeply philosophical simplicity that was to reveal itself in the artist's later work. "We know that Gaitonde admired the lyrical qualities of Klee's line and colour as well as his precision... Speaking about the impact that Klee had on his work at the time, Gaitonde remarked, "Rather than saying I was influenced by Paul Klee, it should be said that I was drawn to the wondrous forms, colour combinations, beauty of line drawings in his work."" (Meera Menezes, Vasudeo Santu Gaitonde: Sonata of Solitude, Mumbai: Bodhana Arts and Research Foundation, 2016, p. 86)

Gaitonde's method of working suggests that he immersed himself in the essence of his inspirations. In an essay on Gaitonde's work, his friend, architect Narendra Dengle writes, "Gaitonde himself said that when Paul Klee became a big influence for him 'he became Paul Klee.' Hence one way would be to look at the masters' works, who became the guiding light for Gaitonde and see the twists, bends, and interpretations that assumed Gaitonde's consciousness finding outlet in his work...There have been paintings that appear like 'abstract landscapes' which are minimalist and very much like some ancient Japanese or Chinese paintings done with brushes of reeds." (Narendra Dengle, "Gaitonde: The Spirit of his Painting," Journal of Landscape Architecture, No. 44, New Delhi: LA, Journal of Landscape Architecture, June 2015, p.99)

The present lot was loaned by the Chowdhury family for the retrospective, Painting as Process, Painting as Life, at the Guggenheim Museum in New York in 2014-15.

Bilwa Chowdhury and Eleonore Chowdhury-Haberl

Bilwa Kanta Chowdhury, an industrialist, and his wife Eleonore (Laura) Chowdhury-Haberl were among the first collectors of modern Indian art in Bombay in the '50s and '60s. Born in 1935 in Klagenfurt, Austria, Eleonore married Bilwa in 1957 and moved to Mumbai. Bilwa, or Bill, as he was known to those close to him, was deeply involved in the art world from the late 1950s. He began collecting Indian art following an interaction with Georg Schafer, an important German art collector, during a training session in Germany. Eleonore remembers her husband as "one of the first serious collectors of Indian paintings in Bombay... all through the sixties." (Laura Chowdhury-Haberl, "A Progressive Patron," Art India, Vol. 7, Issue 3, Quarter 3, Mumbai: Art India Publishing Co. Pvt. Ltd., 2002, p. 50) Through him, she became involved with the work of many leading modernists, and participated actively in the art scene till the late '70s.

The Chowdhurys built an extensive collection of modern Indian art throughout the '60s and '70s. Their first painting was a still-life by K H Ara, which they bought in 1959. Over the next two decades, they had expanded their collection to include most of the significant artists of that era. "In those days we collectors did not really see art as an investment. We bought art for art's sake and never with the thought in mind, that the painting would be worth much more in the future. In fact no one ever thought that the paintings would be worth anything. We were considered quite crazy by most of our friends... visitors to our home frequently asked whether I was the painter, because they could not understand that anybody would actually be willing to spend money on modern Indian art," Chowdhury-Haberl recollected in her article for Art India.

The Chowdhurys sought out art passionately, be it at the studios of artists, or at art galleries. They attended almost every art exhibition at the Jehangir Art Gallery, and regularly visited the Taj Art Gallery and Gallery Chemould-the only art galleries at the time. Their home became a hub for the Modernists, who dropped by regularly and discussed art and art books at length with them. The Chowdhurys' circle included Rudy von Leyden and Emanuel Schlesinger, and art connoisseurs Karl Khandalavala and Octavio Paz, who frequented their home.

Bill also played an important role in influencing Jehangir Nicholson to begin collecting Indian art. In 1976, the Chowdhurys sold a part of their vast collection to him. These paintings are part of the Jehangir Nicholson Foundation in the CSMVS Museum in Mumbai, and some are now a part of other collections in India, the UK and the United States. The Chowdhury Collection is now divided between Mumbai and Vienna, where Eleonore moved in 1980. Since then, in addition to Art India, she has published articles in the Austrian magazines Wiener Zeitung and Parnass, and lectured on modern Indian art in Vienna.

This lot has been part of the Chowdhury family collection.

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