LOT DETAILS

Materials:

Oil on canvas

Size Notes:

60.5 x 80.6

Description:

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Markings:

Signed Jagdish Swaminathan indistinctly and bearing handwritten letter with indistinct inscription New Delhi / too my Good Freind [sic] / With Much affection / and Gratitude / my Champion / and witty / art Critic / George Butcher / forever Indebted / 26th / on reverse

Provenance:

Acquired from an estate sale, Sussex, UK, 2021; As noted on the label on the reverse, this painting was gifted to George Butcher by the artist.George Butcher was a notable British art critic forThe Guardianand a staunch supporter of the burgeoning Indian and South Asian modern art scene. He spent more than two years in India and befriended many artists, gallerists and art critics. It was there that he met Jagdish Swaminathan and the two formed a close friendship. An exhibition curated by Swaminathans son in 2012 even comprised a letter from Swaminathan to Butcher, asking him to bring him to England. Butchers support propelled Swaminathans career. By curating several shows featuring Swaminathan, Ram Kumar, Francis Newton Souza and Anwar Jalal Shemza, he was one of the first writers to assert the remarkable contribution of South Asian artists to a global form of modernism and he has left an indelible mark on the history and canon of modern Indian and South Asian art.