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MF Husain row: Hindu Janajagruti Samiti determined to protest Christie’s | |||
| Published on March 19th, 2008 In Photography, Blogging, Work, Movies, News, Parties, Quiz/Survey, Politics, Contests | Views 798 | ||||
Hussain"s paintings auction: HJS"s protest letter to Christie"sProtest against Christie"s auction of paintings by M.F.HussainJoin HJS to Protest Christie"s : Husain"s paintings on sale !!
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Letter sent to Christie"s gallery by HJSBy Staff Reporter This refers to news regarding your decision regarding withdrawing of Hussain’s paintings from auction on 20th March 2008. We once again request you not to auction M.F. Hussain paintings due to following reasons. The whole world is aware that M.F. Hussain has drawn nude and obscene paintings of Indian Deities and Bharatmata. Thus he has hurt religious and National sentiments of crores of all Indians. More than 1,250 police complaints have been lodged against him and lot of court cases are going on against him throughout India. He is absconding from India and not facing Court Trials. He has been accused of outraging religious sentiments, promoting enemity between different religious groups, selling obscene material and disturbing National integrity, thereby committing offences under several sections of the Indian Penal Code. He has also been accused of committing offenses under section 2 of the prevention of Insults to National Honour Act on account of certain paintings of Hindu Deities and naked Bharatmata. Nowhere in India we allow Hussains paintings exhibitions/auction. We are taking up this issue with American Embassy in India and Indian Government. We have full faith in American Democracy but at the same time your democratic system will not glorify such a accused person who has no courage and respect to comeback to his motherland and justify his act of creating indecent Art, which can be equated only with that of infamous Denmark cartoonist who is also hiding himself. There has been news that infamous Denmark cartoonist is looking for someone to arrange auction of infamous cartoons. Your expression and love for artistic freedom can only be justified if you arrange this auction too. For Hindu Janajagruti Samiti, Mumbai Christie"s to proceed with Hussain painting auctionMarch 18, 2008 Falgun Shuddha Dvadashi New York: Christie"s has decided not to withdraw the works by M F Hussain from the sale of South Asian Modern Contemporary Art here on March 20 despite demands from Hindu groups to bar the celebrated Indian painter because he has allegedly hurt Hindu sentiments by portraying their gods in forms that are seen as disrespectful. ( Hindus must strongly protest against Christie Trust " force them to withdraw M.F.Hussain"s paintings from sale! - Editor) Stating that Christie"s is respectful of all religions and ethnicities, its spokesperson told IANS on Monday, “We also respect artistic freedom. Art and culture embraces multiple interpretations and re-interpretations of religious and ethnic symbols that are often highly individual expressions." ( Will Christie dare to sale the picture of Prophet Muhammad drawn by Danish Cartoonist? Will Christie sale denigrating picture of Jesus Christ or Mother Teresa? - Editor ) Earlier, in a letter to Christie"s, the Indian American Intellectual Forum, which has joined hands with Hindu Janjagruti Samiti on the campaign against Husain, said Husain has gained notoriety in India by painting several Hindu gods and goddesses in derogatory forms. As part of Christie"s spring auction, Hussain"s paintings are expected to fetch hundreds of thousands of dollars. One of them, “The Battle of Ganga and Yamuna" is estimated to rake in $600,000-$800,000. The forum president, Narain Kataria, has also sent a power point presentation to Christie"s, highlighting “Hussain"s deliberate distortion and degradation of Hindu culture". “Seven cases have been registered against him and six courts have issued arrest warrants against him. More than 28,000 people have signed a petition condemning Husain for his malicious attempts to vilify Hindus," Kataria claimed. He added that Hussain stood “condemned by the Indian parliament for painting Mother India in the nude". It was thus unbecoming, Kataria said, on the part of Christie"s to associate with Hussain. The nonagenarian Hussain currently lives in Dubai and London, choosing to stay away from India to evade arrests in connection with the cases filed against him. Source: www.rediff.com Hindu Groups threaten demonstration if Hussain"s painting actionMarch 16, 2008 Falgun Shuddha Dashami In a letter to Christie"s, the Indian American Intellectual Forum which has joined hands with Hindu Janjagruti Samiti against Hussain said the painter has gained “ignominy and notoriety" in India by painting several Hindu gods and goddesses in “derogatory" forms. Christie"s expects some of Hussain"s paintings to fetch between $ 120,000 and $ 180,000 and several between $ 20,000 and $40,000 Kataria also sent a power point presentation to Christie"s which, he says, “lists Hussain"s deliberate distortion and degradation of Hindu culture." “Seven cases have been registered against him. 6 courts have issued arrest warrants against him. More than 28,000 people have signed a petition condemning Mr Husain for his malicious attempts to vilify Hindu people. 1250 police complaints have been filed against him," Kataria claimed. In this background, he said it is “unbecoming on the part of Christie"s, a reputable Art Gallery, “to associate with a person of criminal background and promote his paintings.“ Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com M.F. Husain is a star of Christie"s March saleFebruary 15, 2008Magh Shudda Navami New York: Christie’s South Asian modern and contemporary art sale here on March 20 will feature works of leading 20th and 21st century artists from various countries in the region, including India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. The sale will focus on prime examples of many different movements, styles and highlights and will include works from modern masters M.F. Husain, Francis Newton Souza, Tyeb Mehta, Vasudeo S. Gaitonde, Syed Haider Raza and Ram Kumar as well as works from leading contemporary artists including Atul Dodiya, Bharti Kher and Jitish Kallat. A 1981 untitled painting by Mehta, the lauded master of Indian Modernism, is one of the sale highlights and is estimated at $600,000-800,000. The painting depicts two female figures intermingled, demonstrating Mehta’s formal and psychological considerations, and the two forms suggest the tangled figures of his later “Mahisasura” series. Then there is Husain’s monumental work, “The Battle of Ganga and Jamuna”, painted in 1972 and also estimated at $600,000-800,000. This large diptych was made in the apex of Husain’s career and is a part of a series of 27 paintings he began for the 11th Sao Paolo Biennial. The painting depicts a scene of the ancient Hindu epic “Mahabharata”, detailing the cosmic civil war between forces of right and wrong. Another highlight of the sale is a rare figurative work by Ram Kumar. “Vagabond”, made in 1956, portrays three isolated and forlorn figures, the mood emphasized by the dark and sombre pallet. It is estimated at $400,000-600,000. Souza’s untitled nude of 1961 is of spectacular size and a highlight among the dozen paintings by the artist offered in the sale. It is estimated at $350,000-500,000. Made in the artistic peak of Souza’s career, this work demonstrates why he was known as the “master of lines”. Souza’s paintings reflect his inventive interpretation of the human form, and like Gauguin, possess both a strong sexual aura and a sense of the primitive, the other and the unfamiliar. The auction presents a fantastic group of works by Raza, encompassing significant phases of his career - from the 1960s abstract expressionist work to the 1980s-90s when he incorporated highly colourful ideas and elements of Tantrism, born from Indian scriptural texts. “Bindu Pancha Tatva”, painted in 1999, has a geometrical resemblance to the abstract expressionist painting of Frank Stella and Jasper Johns, and the circle is the formal concern around which Raza structures his canvases. It is estimated at $300,000-500,000. Bhupen Khakhar is an artist who bridges the gap between the modern and contemporary, and his unique and perceptive works have made him one of India’s most revered artists. In the untitled 2002 work offered, Khakhar employs complex spatial arrangement and bold use of colour. The artist treats both men and elephants with equal reverence. It is estimated at $120,000-150,000. Featuring among the contemporary highlights in the auction is T.V. Santhosh’s “Traces of an Ancient Error”, a 2007 work that is estimated at $150,000-200,000. Santhosh is internationally known as one of the rising stars of the contemporary Indian art scene with several exhibitions to his credit. His works capitalize on the attributes of post-modernism, and often address the subjects of war, catastrophe and modern society. Kher is also gaining increasing critical acclaim as one of India’s key contemporary artists. Trained originally as a painter in Britain before moving to India, her range of work has extended to include collage, sculpture and digital photography. As depicted in her 2005 untitled work, Kher uses the bindi, a symbolic and stylistic adornment in India, as her main aesthetic tool and transforms it to explore the issues between tradition and modernism. This work is estimated at $30,000-50,000. Evolving from the realist tradition, Rameshwar Broota’s works have gradually moved towards the abstract, as shown in “Traces of a Man-I”, estimated at $180,000-200,000. He has developed a unique way of painting by utilizing a sharp thin blade to bring in light and forms, giving his work a luminous and translucent look. Other contemporary highlights include Dodiya’s untitled in which he focuses on the horizon and divides the landscape into earth and cosmos. It is estimated at $120,000-150,000. The sale consists of over 125 lots and is expected to realize in excess of $9 million. Source: http://www.thaindian.com Please see this |
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