Osian's Auction Catalogue Select Masterpieces of Indian Modern and Contemporary Art | June 2009

19 3 K.H. Ara (1913 – 1985) Woman and Desire Gouache on paper pasted on cardboard, 1933 S/d in English ‘ARA 1933’ l.r. 37.2 x 16.4 in (94.5 x 41.7 cm) INR 2,400,000 – 3,000,000 USD 50,000 – 62,500 Ara improvises on the symbolism of “primordial sin” in Christian mythology – the scene of temptation, Satan tempts Eve to eat the forbidden fruit from the Tree of Knowledge that leads to the fall of Man. He uses “the familiar” image of serpent and half-naked woman in the wilderness. Lot 3 is one of the rare early works of the 1930s in Ara’s oeuvre, amidst his famous nudes and still-life studies.