Jagdish Swaminathan

(Indian, 1928-1994)

Untitled

Footnotes

Provenance
Property from a Corporate Collection, UK.

This Untitled work, painted in 1991, marks a pivotal phase in Swaminathan's career. During this time, he focused on distilling the world into its most fundamental and 'purest essence.' Swaminathan's oeuvre is profoundly shaped by the forms and symbols of tribal art, which significantly influenced his canvases, transforming them with a substantial and evocative aesthetic.

The formative years of Swaminathan's career, spanning the latter part of the 1960s and the entirety of the 1970s, began with the Colour Geometry of Space series, which established a foundation for his subsequent work. After exploring pictural depictions of flat geometric planes of colour in this body of work, he began incorporating natural elements into his conceptual landscapes, noticeable in his later Mountain, Tree, and Bird series. In these works, he crafted imaginative realms that were both poetic and often conveyed a profound sense of peace, achieved through the juxtaposition of mountains, trees, rocks, and animals against bold and vibrant geometric fields of colour. The calming serenity of these images captivated his imagination and prompted a deep exploration of the intricate relationships between nature and the spiritual. As such the meditative stillness they evoked became a lasting obsession for the artist.

"The mind and sensibility of the Indian artist are extremely sophisticated and subtle, and nurtured by a view of life that is deeply and searchingly spiritual."(Ebrahim Alkazi, Manifestations XI - 75 Artists 20th Century Indian Artp.83).

Swaminathan's artistic journey was driven not only by a desire for personal exploration but also by a call for the reformation of Indian art, advocating for its liberation from blind nationalism and the uncritical embrace of Western modernism. In the early 1960s, Swaminathan and eleven other artists formed Group 1890, named after the house number of J. Pandya, where they held their inaugural meeting. This collective aimed to explore new artistic horizons and 'stood passionately and romantically for modernist values that signalled change' (Journal of Arts & Ideas, issues 27-28, March 1995, page 147.-Journal of Arts and Ideas -- Digital South Asia Library), representing a pivotal moment in the evolution of Indian contemporary art. The group held its only exhibition in 1963, which significantly influenced the artistic landscape of the time. Despite its brief existence, Swaminathan remained dedicated to its foundational principles.

Building on the principles established during this pivotal collective experience, Swaminathan's artistic journey took a significant shift in the 1980s. During this time, he began to explore a palette of natural tones, employing textured paint techniques and creating compositions that emphasized geometric shapes. This evolution distinguishes the consigned lot from his earlier landscapes characterized by vivid colours.

The earthy tones present in this untitled work resonate with Swaminathan's later artistic expression, which was profoundly shaped by his formative experiences in the heart of India's forests, where he lived among tribal communities. This immersion fostered a lasting fascination with indigenous art and tribal iconography, which became central to his practice. In J. Swaminathan: An Exhibition of Paintings (Vadehra Art Gallery, 1993), he recounted a formative experience that further illustrates this connection.: "A young boy had been bitten by a snake, and the witch doctor was reviving him with continuous chants while throwing pots full of water on him. We watched in rapt fascination, and soon enough, the boy recovered, and the snake, which had been imprisoned in an earthen pot, was released and vanished into a thick bamboo grove. This early encounter with tribal life had a profound impact on my later life."

This narrative not only highlights the significance of his early experiences but also sets the stage for understanding his engagement with vernacular art. Swaminathan's work reveals a significant interplay between his creative perspective and India's traditional heritage. Underscoring the lasting influence of traditional forms on his evolving artistic practice.

Swaminathan's untitled piece exemplifies this connection through its balanced composition, divided into two main panels. The left panel presents a triangular form textured and layered in warm earth tones of deep browns, ochres, and muted oranges. In contrast, the right panel showcases a cooler, darker palette of greys and blues, characterized by overlapping shapes, triangles, and vertical lines. This juxtaposition creates visual tension, while the central dividing line serves as a unifying element, highlighting the surface's physicality.

In Swaminathan's oeuvre, the upward-pointing triangle serves as a signature element, symbolizing stability and balance while suggesting spiritual significance through its central placement. This form presents an abstract and minimalist interpretation of his renowned mountains, viewed in the Hindu context as the home of Shiva. This symbolism enriches the spiritual dimensions of this untitled work and aligns with his broader artistic vision, which extends beyond simple narratives or visual elements.

Swaminathan's lyrical approach conveyed in this lot, reflects the neo-tantric movement of the 1970s, which emphasized spirituality, mysticism, and abstraction. As such, for Swaminathan, art transcends traditional representations of reality; it invites a more profound engagement with the essence of life itself and aims to inspire a sense of freedom that encourages deeper explorations and understanding.

"Art is neither conformity to reality nor a flight from it. It is a whole new world of experience, the threshold for the passage into the state of freedom"(Jagdish Swaminathan, Group 1890, Manifesto)