Osian's Auction Catalogue The Masterpieces Series | March 2010

145 The Masterpieces SerieS 91 B ikaSh B hattaCharJee (1940 – 2006) Portrait of Mrs. Jyoti Thapar Oil on canvas, 1982-83 S/d in English ‘Bikash 82-83’ l.l. 41.8 x 39.8 in (106.2 x 101.2 cm) INR 3,600,000 – 5,400,000 US$ 75,000 – 112,500 Mrs. Jyoti Thapar, a lover of the arts and a respectable name in the business world is the subject of Bhattacharjee’s portrait here. The strange and dramatic interplay of light and shade on her face, and the odd and urban constellation of objects around her, make this a very fine example of Bikash’s portraiture from the early 80s. A contemporary critic wrote about his portraits: “Portraits serve Bikash specially well in extending his basic conceptual understanding of the relation between appearance and reality. He transforms the perceptible appearance by clever juxtaposition of comprising parts and play of tonality, light and shade to visually objectify the hidden reality. Representational photo-morphic approach to images, makes the men and women of Bikash’s paintings real individuals of flesh and blood, even when they are not.” (Pranabranjan Ray, Bikash Bhattacharjee, Dhoomimal Art Gallery, ExC, 1979).