Osian's Auction Catalogue The Masterpieces and Museum Quality Series | October 2004

135 THE MASTERPIECES & MUSEUM-QUALITY SERIES 95 Baiju PARTHAN [b . 1956, Kerala] Wombtime & Simultaneity S/d in English t.r. Oil on canvas, 1992 167.0 x 122.0 cm (65.7 x 48.0 in) Rs. 400,000 – 500,000 $ 8,650 – 10,800 £ 4,725 – 5,925 ‘Capricious creatures of darkness and light enliven Baiju Parthan’s painterly vision. In his large canvas, Wombtime and Simul- taneity he makes a major shift away from his hitherto smaller format and confidently evolves a complex vocabulary of metaphor and symbol that fairly bursts with expressionist imagery and colour values. An organic momentum propels this work into an energy field where multiple levels of con- sciousness and experience articu- late themselves simultaneously. A brilliant palette and well-delib- erated modulation of depth and texture create a clear narrative mode of delineating a series of events that converge in time and space. Subtle memories of birth, magic rites, a playful metamor- phosis of states of being includ- ing anthromorphic jugglery take a great sensual leap that plunges us into an interiority we often retreat to. A primordial energy suffuses this work. Parthan han- dles the oils with refinement. The subtly layered washes of pigment charge the emergent colour fields with naivete and intense mystery. The puzzle does not let itself fall into place. This song contin- ues to reinvent itself.’ Sumitra K.Srinivasan, rpt. in Artists For Helpage Auction Catalogue 1994.