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Lot Essay
"[...] in his painting of the solitary Musician a sense of contained rhythm is achieved in the vibrant coloring of the motif itself." (R. Bartholomew & S. Kapur, Maqbool Fida Husain, New York, 1972, p. 42)
From the 1960s, Husain painted several works that combined two of his favorite themes: music and the female form, experimenting between grouped and single figures at the heart of his compositions. In this example Husain flattens and fractures the female form alluding to European Modernism whilst simultaneously infusing the composition with a lyrical sense with rhythmic energy. "Husain's women, far from arousing passion, are ascetic without any of the abundant sexuality found in Indian sculptures. It is almost as if he strips the sculptures of all exterior embellishments to arrive at their basic sense of movement." (Y. Dalmia, The Making of Modern Art, The Progressives, New Delhi, 2001, p. 111)
This female musician, far from being a manifestation of feminine sensuality, is instead an homage to sculptural tradition. Husain like the stance of this melodious woman would overtly oscillate between one direction and the other as he referenced the classical sculpture of East and West. He pays homage to Indian classical sculpture in the traditional Tribhanga pose of the woman. In this classical stance of Tribhanga (three bends) common in temple sculpture, a figure is portrayed in three broken movements. Husain noted that it was not only this representation in sculpture that was particular but that, "in the East the human form is an entirely different structure [...] the way a woman walks in the village there are three breaks [...] from the feet, the hips and the shoulder [...] they move in rhythm, the walk of a European is erect and archaic." (P. Nandy, The Illustrated Weekly of India, December 4 - 10, 1983)
From the 1960s, Husain painted several works that combined two of his favorite themes: music and the female form, experimenting between grouped and single figures at the heart of his compositions. In this example Husain flattens and fractures the female form alluding to European Modernism whilst simultaneously infusing the composition with a lyrical sense with rhythmic energy. "Husain's women, far from arousing passion, are ascetic without any of the abundant sexuality found in Indian sculptures. It is almost as if he strips the sculptures of all exterior embellishments to arrive at their basic sense of movement." (Y. Dalmia, The Making of Modern Art, The Progressives, New Delhi, 2001, p. 111)
This female musician, far from being a manifestation of feminine sensuality, is instead an homage to sculptural tradition. Husain like the stance of this melodious woman would overtly oscillate between one direction and the other as he referenced the classical sculpture of East and West. He pays homage to Indian classical sculpture in the traditional Tribhanga pose of the woman. In this classical stance of Tribhanga (three bends) common in temple sculpture, a figure is portrayed in three broken movements. Husain noted that it was not only this representation in sculpture that was particular but that, "in the East the human form is an entirely different structure [...] the way a woman walks in the village there are three breaks [...] from the feet, the hips and the shoulder [...] they move in rhythm, the walk of a European is erect and archaic." (P. Nandy, The Illustrated Weekly of India, December 4 - 10, 1983)