Page 105 - Iconic Master

Lot No. 60

K G SUBRAMANYAN

1924-2016
UNTITLED (FLYING DEVI)
35.5 x 35.5 in (90 x 90 cm)
Reverse painting on acrylic sheet
2013
Signed: Bottom Right
` 10,00,000 - 15,00,000 | $ 12,500 - 18,750
Provenance: Property from a collection based
in Kolkata

K G Subramanyan was a multifaceted Indian
artist-painter, muralist, sculptor, printmaker,
writer, scholar, teacher, and prolific art
historian who cultivated a distinctly
personal artistic style over the course of
his career. Initially studying economics
at Presidency College, Madras, he later
pursued art at Shantiniketan, where he was
mentored by renowned artists Nandalal Bose,
Benode Behari Mukherjee, and Ramkinkar
Baij. In 1955, Subramanyan received a
British Council Research Fellowship to
study at the Slade School of Art in London.
A decade later, he travelled to New York as a
Rockefeller Fellow.
Subramanyan’s works, a vibrant blend of
modern and traditional elements, drew
inspiration from a wide array of sources,
including indigenous Bengali artistic
traditions, Indian tribal art, folk symbolism,
and aspects of European modernism such
as Cubism. Drawing upon the rich wellspring
of personal memories and mythological
narratives, the artist portrayed women,
children, objects, and animals in a theatrical
display of vivid colours, infusing his canvases
with a sense of magical realism.