Important Notice

There is a sense of power as well as one of nostalgia in the present lot, a large tarpaulin tableau by G.R. Iranna. Covered in fissures, the piece portrays a king in a court-portrait like setting. However, the ruler seated on his throne has a cracked, featureless visage, and the tigers that flank him seem grey and old. Once magisterial, these figures are now “…trapped between past and future, power and the loss of power. These are tragic... There is a sense of power as well as one of nostalgia in the present lot, a large tarpaulin tableau by G.R. Iranna. Covered in fissures, the piece portrays a king in a court-portrait like setting. However, the ruler seated on his throne has a cracked, featureless visage, and the tigers that flank him seem grey and old. Once magisterial, these figures are now “…trapped between past and future, power and the loss of power. These are tragic inheritors of lost empires, deceived by cunning mapmakers and their own inability to second-guess the dark angel of history” (Ranjit Hoskote, The Dancer on the Horse: Reflections on the Art of Iranna GR, Mapin Publishing, Ahmedabad, 2007, p. 29).

Perched ceremoniously upon his seat, held up by ornate legs carved to resemble the once-ferocious cats that sit on their haunches by his side, the king is dressed in complete regal attire, jeweled, turbaned and armed with his ceremonial sword. “Here is a man whose power has been drained away, who sits by himself, his throne no grander than a park bench: a center that has been left to its own devices by those who once worshipped it.” In addition, this court portrait serves as a map, “…cracking along lines drawn by territorial disputes, with the schisms taking a toll on the king’s face as well...[as he] presides over a fissured land that has desiccated him as well” (Ibid.).

The artist’s surface both glorifies and opposes the ruler’s position. Like the cracks that run through it, the rustic, weathered look makes the subjects of the portrait, both human and animal, appear dislocated and aged. Iranna, in his unique manner, textures the tarpaulin surface using several mark making techniques and instruments. His use of a subtle, muted palette adds to the atmosphere that the canvas creates, making it look as if it has faded with time.

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