Osian's Auction Catalogue Indian Modern Fine Arts | February 2019

Indian Modern Fine Arts | 121 57 F.N. SOUZA 12 April 1924 / 28 March 2002 The Last Supper Series Oil on canvas, nd Signed ‘Souza’ t.r. 36.0 x 48.0 in (91.4 x 121.9 cm) Provenance Property of an Important Mumbai- based Collection INR 12,000,000 – 18,000,000 US$ 169,014 – 253,521 Full double spread image on pp. 122-123 The Roman Catholic Church, which dominated religious life in Goa, Souza’s birthplace, had a significant effect on the artist’s life and work. The many churches of the former Portuguese colony, with their overwhelming architecture and impressive rituals, left a lasting impression on him: Souza was fascinated by the splendour of the services, their pomp and ceremony, their use of elaborate ornate symbols, and the grandeur of the priest’s robes and vestments. The icons of suffering saints, and the image of Christ martyred on the cross also deeply affected the artist, repeatedly appearing in his work, albeit in altered forms, throughout his painterly career. – Avari, Nishad. F.N. Souza . Saffron Art and Grosvenor Gallery, 2008 ExC.pp.74 The Last Supper - One of the most important Series of F.N. Souza’s painterly life