Osian's Auction Catalogue India The Passionate Detachment | February 2001

EXPERIMENTS & EXPRESSIONISM 137 PAPR Lot 23 Ch.Lon/ 02.06.98 Three Mary’s Gouache on panel (Recto) Pencil on panel (Verso) ASP: £ 5,520/ Rs. 377,568 (£1 = Rs. 68.40) Lot 276 So.NY/ 17.09.98 Three Women Gouache on card 74.3 x 38.4 cm. ASP: $ 9,775/Rs. 414,460 ($1 = Rs. 42.40) Lot 18 Bo.Lon/ 16.06.99 Three Women Gouache on paper 45.5 x 20.5 cm. ASP: £ 3,600/ Rs.248,040 (£1 = Rs. 68.90) 105 JAMINI ROY (1887 — 1972) National Art Treasure Radha & Nayikas Signed in Bengali, l.r & seal Gouache on paper board, late 1940s 54.6 x 29.2 cm. (21.5 x 11.5”) Rs. 400,000 – 500,000 Non-Exportable Item “ Once the artist was sure of his path, it was only a question of moving ahead. He had already been fascinated by the bold sweeping lines of the Kalighat pats and some of his early works, especially the compositions of women, are characterised by curvilinear drawing and bold strokes. His Kalighat-type works show some signs of sophistication, and this may be due to their urban or semi-urban root. The artist’s later works reflect a closer affinity with the rural pats. In short, now started an attempt on his part to further simplify his works… In this attempt at simplification, Jamini Roy tried to preserve certain basic forms, colours and patterns. He attempts to shed the non-essentials in his search for certain universal elements and reaches a stage where his figures, shorns of frills and decorations, attain a frieze-like architectonic quality…In the process of simplification, besides solving some technical problems, he also tried to give up the literary content in the pictures. The success he achieved is certainly something unique.” (Ajit Kumar Das, rpt. in LKA Monograph 1987 ).