Important Notice

In 1960, Ram Kumar made the defining journey to Benaras which marked a turning point in his career. Accompanied by his friend and fellow artist M F Husain, Kumar's exposure to this complex, buzzing city that represented the cycle of life and death would become a central subject of his works in the following decades. By the late 1950s, the artist had already begun to move away from figurative works in search of a new artistic journey, and he... In 1960, Ram Kumar made the defining journey to Benaras which marked a turning point in his career. Accompanied by his friend and fellow artist M F Husain, Kumar's exposure to this complex, buzzing city that represented the cycle of life and death would become a central subject of his works in the following decades. By the late 1950s, the artist had already begun to move away from figurative works in search of a new artistic journey, and he returned to his native Simla in 1959. Benaras fascinated Kumar, but rather than a literal representation of the sights around him, his depictions were emotive, negotiating the forms of the landscape with the increasingly abstract depictions of built forms and water. "Benares is important for me both as an artist and as a human being. The first paintings came at a point when I wanted to develop elements in figurative painting and go beyond it. My first visit to the city invoked an emotional reaction as it had peculiar associations. But such romantic ideas were dispelled when I came face to face with reality. There was so much pain and sorrow of humanity. As an artist, it became a challenge to portray this agony and suffering. Its intensity required the use of symbolic motifs, so my Benares is of a representative sort." (Seema Bawa, "Ram Kumar: Artistic Intensity of an Ascetic," artnewsnviews.com, online)

The present lot features a cluster of jumbled forms painted in an earthy palette, surrounded by blue water - possibly an aerial view of the vibrant city. According to Meera Menezes, over the years, Kumar's depictions of Benaras would oscillate between "expressionism and abstraction," as well as the city and landscape." (Meera Menezes, Ram Kumar: Traversing the Landscapes of the Mind, Mumbai: Saffronart, 2016, p. 12) The artist's unique vision of the well-visited and significant city - known to be "teeming with people" and with "myriad sounds, high pitched noises and melodious chants" - imagines instead a desolate place devoid of people. However, it is "not really deserted... What he was interested in depicting was not just the jostling crowds at the ghats; not the hubbub of rites; not the hope, or frenzy, or anticipated bliss of the people; but the silent waiting that underlay it all.' (Geeta Kapur, Contemporary Indian Artists, New Delhi: Vikas Publishing House, 1978, p. 75)

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