Important Notice

Jagannath Panda's work frequently highlights the complex relationship between the natural and the manmade, the traditional and the modern, raising questions about our collective and increasingly endangered future. Panda's subjects, as seen in the present lot, are often animals lost in an urban wasteland, representative of the experience of displacement. The loss of the goats' natural habitat here, stands as a metaphor for the millions of... Jagannath Panda's work frequently highlights the complex relationship between the natural and the manmade, the traditional and the modern, raising questions about our collective and increasingly endangered future. Panda's subjects, as seen in the present lot, are often animals lost in an urban wasteland, representative of the experience of displacement. The loss of the goats' natural habitat here, stands as a metaphor for the millions of migrants removed from their rural surroundings and forced to adapt to city life. In this context, the artist alludes to his own experience as a migrant in the satellite city of Gurgaon, which has witnessed an accelerated urban boom in the last few decades. The present lot depicts six goats milling around stacks of bricks and a part of a property fence. "The manner in which they are composed, caught in the headlights as it were, in a moment of stillness, the midst of what may be constant movement, gives the impression that they have strayed into the city." (Latika Gupta, "Migrant Anywhere Anytime," Ode to the Monumental, Mumbai: Saffronart, 2014, p. 356)

A closer look at the animals reveals surfaces of intricately patterned fabrics, brocade and shimmering textiles. The artist appears to be covering the animals with a second skin. "These "clothes" seemed to render them almost human and amplified their significance as metaphors for the human condition." (Meera Menezes, "Politics of Displacement," art Varta, 3 January 2010, online)

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