Rare M.F. Husain Masterpiece 'Untitled (Benares)' to Star in Saffronart's Spring Auctions
Lucknow: A rare and significant painting by the legendary Indian artist M.F. Husain, titled 'Untitled (Benares)', is set to be a centerpiece of Saffronart's upcoming Spring Live and Online Auctions. This vibrant work, estimated to fetch between Rs 10 and 15 crore, serves as a powerful tribute to the timeless spiritual essence of the sacred city of Varanasi.
Capturing the Soul of Kashi
The masterpiece vividly captures the dynamic essence of Kashi's iconic ghats, masterfully blending depictions of deep spirituality with the rhythms of everyday life through Husain's characteristic bold and expressive brushstrokes. According to Saffronart, Husain first visited Benares in the early 1960s with his friend and fellow artist Ram Kumar, staying at the home of Shripat Rai, son of the renowned writer Premchand, in the Godowlia area.
This visit left an indelible mark on the artist. Husain later reflected, "If in 1948 I saw the quintessence of Indian art in Delhi, in Benares I saw the essence of India. At the level of thought, this left a very deep impression." The Saffronart Spring Auction Catalogue notes that the artist was profoundly confronted by the eternal cycle of life and death playing out daily before his eyes at the city's teeming ghats.
A Deeper Artistic Engagement
Husain's experience observing cremation rituals at Manikarnika Ghat led to a profound realization. He recalled the initial dismay giving way to an understanding of celebration, noting the accompanying shehnai music brought home "the inescapable truth that sadness and suffering were of our own making, while the celebration around was the real Benares." He described feeling an "exhilarating sense of freedom" and a breakdown of barriers between life and death, a sentiment he believed unique to India.
Art critic Geeta Kapur observed that Husain's art originates from "tactile contact with life" and brings an interpretative insight, recognizing the moment a subject reveals its truth. In this particular work, the quivering lines characteristic of Husain's earlier Benares sketches from the 1960s and 1970s evolve into strong, confident strokes. This suggests a deeper, more nuanced engagement with the city's spiritual connotations and an apparent reconciliation of its many contradictions.
Spring Auction Details and Highlights
Building on the strong momentum from its 25th-anniversary year, which featured multiple record-breaking sales, Saffronart will hold its Live Auction in Mumbai on April 1st. The Online Auction will run concurrently from April 1st to April 2nd.
The auction catalogue presents a remarkable collection pivotal to the evolution of modern Indian art, alongside rare antiquities, sculptures, and contemporary masterpieces. Notable featured artists include:
- Raja Ravi Varma
- M.F. Husain
- S.H. Raza
- F.N. Souza
- American Orientalist Edwin Lord Weeks
Other Key Masterpieces
Leading the sale is Raja Ravi Varma's exquisite painting 'Yashoda and Krishna'. Created in the 1890s at the height of Varma's career, this emotionally resonant work interprets the universal theme of maternal love through the mythological figures of the infant Lord Krishna and his foster mother, Yashoda. With very few of Ravi Varma's oil paintings remaining in private hands today, this piece represents a unique opportunity for collectors.
Another significant highlight is a rare early Kashmiri bronze sculpture of Buddha, formerly part of the esteemed collection of noted collectors Nalini and Haridas Swali.
Dinesh Vazrani, CEO & Co-founder of Saffronart, stated, "We are pleased to open our auction calendar with a wide-ranging catalogue of modern and contemporary art, sculpture, and antiquities in our Spring Live and Online Auctions. It is a privilege to have 'Yashoda and Krishna', a truly exceptional painting by Raja Ravi Varma, lead the sale as it comes to auction for the first time."
The inclusion of M.F. Husain's 'Untitled (Benares)' underscores the auction's focus on works that capture the profound spiritual and cultural narratives of India, offering collectors a chance to acquire pieces of immense historical and artistic significance.
