Page 94 - Iconic Master

Lot No. 54

SAKTI BURMAN

b. 1935
UNTITLED (LANDSCAPE)
32 x 45.5 in (81.2 x 115.5 cm)
Oil on canvas
1966
Signed & Dated: Bottom Right
` 40,00,000 - 60,00,000
$ 50,000 - 75,000
Provenance: Property from a collection
based in Chennai

Painted in 1966, a decade following
Sakti Burman’s relocation to Paris
and enrollment at the Ecole Nationale
Superieure des Beaux-Arts, the presented
lot marks a significant juncture in his
life and career. Despite encountering
financial challenges during his early
years, Burman’s trajectory underwent
a remarkable transformation through
encounters with influential figures and
exposure to pivotal artworks.

His sojourns to Italy introduced him
to the masterpieces of Renaissance
luminaries such as Raphael, da Vinci,
Titian, and Botticelli, while his time in
Spain immersed him in the works of
Francisco Goya and Diego Velazquez, all
of whom left an indelible imprint on his
artistic sensibilities. In the French milieu,
Burman found inspiration in the works
of Henri Matisse, Marc Chagall, and
Pierre Bonnard, whose art profoundly
influenced his own.
The landscapes from this period,
including the present piece, bear traces
of Matisse’s spontaneous brushwork,
Bonnard’s intimate portrayal of interiors
and rooftops, and an infusion of Indian
aesthetics, all synthesized into a style
uniquely his own.