Important Notice

Shibu Natesan's large scale paintings juxtapose images taken from the media with the journalistic realism of photography. Natesan's often ironic tone is informed by his personal experiences, such as witnessing the 1980s anti-establishment upheaval in his native Kerala, and the loneliness resulting from migration. His work draws from a wide range of literary, cinematic and art historical references, as seen in the present lot, which is rendered... Shibu Natesan's large scale paintings juxtapose images taken from the media with the journalistic realism of photography. Natesan's often ironic tone is informed by his personal experiences, such as witnessing the 1980s anti-establishment upheaval in his native Kerala, and the loneliness resulting from migration. His work draws from a wide range of literary, cinematic and art historical references, as seen in the present lot, which is rendered in the bright colours and unexpected symbols typical of Natesan's oeuvre.

The large scale painting titled Soul Searchers depicts two "natural" males in the foreground staring into the distance while a sleeping dog is curled up at their feet. The background is composed of a flock of flamingos set against a clear blue sky. "In his paintings... Natesan tries to push the limits of the real to achieve effects that a photograph will never be able to reproduce. The challenge, as he explained in another context, is in bringing 'the impossible ... into the possible, and the imaginative into the actual'." (Somak Ghoshal, "Shibu Natesan: Stranger Than Reality," Livemint, 16 March 2013, online) The deliberately placed juxtaposition of figures here contrasts with the extreme realism of the photograph-like portrayal to create an enigmatic commentary on the nature of seasons and migration in nature and the inhabited lands.

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