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

43 15 Anju Dodiya (b.1964) Coronation ll Acrylic on velvet mattress, 2004 Signed in English ‘anju dodiya’ on verso 48.1 x 46.0 x 7.3 in (214.5 x 116.8 x 18.5 cm) Inscribed in English ‘ANJU DODIYA 2004, Title: CORONATION ll’ on verso INR 4,000,000 – 5,000,000 USD 83,330 – 104,170 Exhibition Reference ‘After Dark’, Cu. Gayatri Sinha, Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai, 2004 As against the stringent two-dimensionality of the canvas, Anju Dodiya for the very first time indulged into creating textured patterns on mattresses for the Hyatt Hotels on the theme of ‘Shiva Parvati Marriage’. Her second innings with the three-dimensional velvet mattress began with the Gayatri Sinha curated show titled ‘After Dark’. The above lot is one of the three works done on velvet mattress that was part of the exhibition. The mattress is used as a metaphor to express her concerns about an artist’s inner life which is full of doubts and anxiety leading to insomnia. ‘Coronation II’ is about self mockery where the artist has tried placing an emphasis on the slowing down of the creative mind because of the fundamental darkness within, represented in the form of a medieval weapon, tribulus (caltrop) which serves the purpose of a speed breaker, slowing down the advance.