Page 209 - Iconic Master

Lot No. 117

LAXMAN SHRESTHA

b. 1939
UNTITLED
34.5 x 38.5 in (88 x 98 cm)
Oil on canvas
Signed: Verso
` 10,00,000 - 15,00,000 | $ 12,500 - 18,750
Provenance: Property from a collection based
in Mumbai

Born in Siraha, Nepal, in 1939, artist Laxman
Shrestha commenced his education at the University
of Bihar, Patna. He moved to Bombay to study at the
Sir J J School of Arts. He left for Europe to continue
his studies and eventually attended Ecole Nationale
des Beaux-Arts, Paris, and later the Central School of
Art in London. During this period, the artist also spent
time at the Academie Grande Chaumiere and Atelier
17 in Paris, helmed by legendary printmaker Stanley
William Hayter.
Exuding a sense of meditative spirituality, Laxman
Shrestha’s abstract works rise from the throes of
extreme hardships he faced as a struggling art
student. On the brink of destitution and starvation,
the artist embarked on a perennial search for
answers to existential dilemmas and found solace
in different schools of thought, including texts from
the Upanishads and Buddhism.
With intermingling layers and shades, Laxman
Shrestha’s canvases emote a sense of intrigue and
present the observer with limitless interpretations
to arrive at. Since his maiden exhibition at Taj Art
Gallery, Mumbai, 1963, the artist has presented
his works in numerous solo and group shows
across the world. He has also been the recipient of
various awards, including the French Government
Scholarship and the British Council Grant.