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103
PROPERTY FROM THE COLLECTION OF ALITA CHANDRA WIG, NEW DELHI
56
AVINASH CHANDRA
(1931 ‒ 1991)
Untitled
Signed and dated ‘Avinash 55’ (lower left)
1955
Oil on canvas
23.5 x 23.5 in (60 x 60 cm)
Rs 8,00,000 ‒ 12,00,000
$ 11,945 ‒ 17,915
PROVENANCE:
Collection of the Artist
The early part of Avinash Chandra’s
art career was dominated by
landscapes and cityscapes. The
present lot is the most mature work
of the “realistic landscape” phase
of Avinash Chandra’s career. It also
represents a biographical milestone
in the artist’s life because it was
painted in June 1955, while he was
on his honeymoon in Kashmir.
Chandra married his college
sweetheart, fellow artist Premlata
on 7 May 1955. It shows the bridge
over river Jhelum in the background
and houseboats in the foreground.
The scene is drawn at dusk with a
fiery sky that casts a glow on the
shikharas
and the river. The lurking
shadows around the buildings and
the vegetation create a melancholic
atmosphere.
Avinash Chandra was born in Simla
in 1931. He travelledwithin India, and
to England and Europe in the 1950s.
In 1956, Chandra moved to the
United Kingdom, where he studied
the paintings of Vincent van Gogh
and Soutine. Chandra’s talent was
recognised by many institutions. He
was the first Indian artist to exhibit
at Documenta—one of the most
important art events in the world—
in Kassel, West Germany, in 1964. He
was awarded the John D Rockefeller
III scholarship to study in New York
the following year. With his move to
the United States, Chandra moved
away from landscapes and began
focussing on the female body. His
works are part of several important
private and public collections,
including many museums in the UK.
Chandra passed away in 1991.
Avinash Chandra and Premlata as newlyweds in
Kashmir in 1955
Image courtesy of the artist’s family