Lot 47: Prabhakar Barwe (1936 - 1996) , Existence Enamel on canvas

Signed, dated and inscribed 'PRABHAKAR BARWE/ 'EXISTENCE' 1986/ 120 X 140 CMS' on reverse Enamel on canvas

47 1/4 by 55 1/4 in. (120 by 140 cm.)

PROPERTY FROM A EUROPEAN COLLECTION
The Pop Art Movement in the West glorified the banal nature of everyday objects such as the soup can in oversized formats. In the 1970's Barwe likewise painted mundane, seemingly unrelated objects that seem to float in space, but on a scale that is intimate, often juxtaposing objects in surprising ways that allow the viewer to respond to them in new ways. 'In the 70s, Barwe's thematic and stylistic preoccupations underwent a change. Newly interested in space as a metaphysical concept, he began striving for a purity of form and colour. The fluid relationship between an object, an idea, and its translation into an image became a 'meta-level' concern. The works began to take on a gentle lyricism, reflected in titles like Orange Prayer or Cloud Fish. He also began using a house painter's brand of synthetic glossy enamel paint - when diluted in turpentine and kerosene, it achieves a delicacy akin to watercolour. His brushwork became practically invisible, and strong colour gave way to muted shades. Despite this new austerity of palette, images of this period have a rare luminosity. Barwe continued to refine his use of image through the 80's and 90's. Isolated heads, pendulum clocks, and staircases recur in his works. Colour was gradually drained out of the canvas, forms often reduced to mere shadows, imprints, outlines. Nevertheless, he continued to use diverse elements, holding them together on a single canvas in graceful balance. The artist's mature works correspond to his disposition - they are quiet, self effacing and almost monastic.' (Amrita Jhaveri, A Guide to 101 Modern and Contemporary Indian Artists, Mumbai, 2005, p. 5).