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Sakti Burman’s paintings often
evoke a surrealist feel, referencing
multiplicities of time and place.
The prominent female figure in
the present lot might draw from
16
th
century European art but the
weathered, fresco‒like technique
harks back to much earlier times.
Burman’s art drew extensively from
Hindu and European mythology,
as well as from the artist’s own
memories. Suggesting surrealism,
his paintings are populated by
humans, animals and cityscapes
that are dreamlike in appearance.
His defining oeuvre owes largely
to his technique of marbling,
which he arrived at after years of
experimentation. Burman travelled
to Italy in 1958 and his encounter
with the frescoes of Giotto, Piero
de la Francesca and Simone Martini
inspired him to assimilate their
monumentality and textures in his
works. Critic Kishore Singh suggests
that Burman’s marbling technique
was serendipitous, observing that
“instead of just painting over [the
painting] once it had dried, he
continued to experiment, and
liked… the colouration this resulted
in, an ode to a passing age and a
sense of gentle ageing that suited
his sensibilities. The mural‒like effect
appeared first within the figures;
it would later become part of the
background as well.” (B N Goswamy,
Kishore Singh, Mrinal Ghosh eds.,
Sakti Burman: The Wonder of It All
,
Mumbai: Pundole Art Gallery and
Apparao Galleries, 2012, p. 49)
Burman in studio with present lot in background.
Reproduced from
Sakti Burman
, Paris: Imprimerie de Blayac, 1984
Burman at work on the present lot.
Reproduced from B N Goswamy, Kishore Singh, Mrinal
Ghosh eds.,
Sakti Burman: The Wonder of it All
, Mumbai:
Pundole Art Gallery and Chennai: Apparao Galleries,
2012, p. 18
32
SAKTI BURMAN
(b. 1935)
Le Miroir du Temps (Mirror of Time)
Signed and dated ‘SAKTi Burman’
(lower right)
Circa 1977‒1983
Oil on canvas
39.25 x 31.75 in (99.5 x 80.4 cm)
Rs 28,00,000 ‒ 32,00,000
$ 41,795 ‒ 47,765
PROVENANCE:
Private French Collection
Private Collection, New Delhi
PUBLISHED:
B N Goswamy, Kishore Singh, Mrinal
Ghosh eds.,
Sakti Burman: The Wonder
of it All
, Mumbai: Pundole Art Gallery;
Chennai: Apparao Art Galleries, 2012, p.
18 (illustrated)
Sakti Burman,
Paris: Imprimerie de
Blayac, 1984 (illustrated, unpaginated)