Live Auction 2299South Asian Modern + Contemporary Art
Christie’s roundel
Lot 66 PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE COLLECTOR, LONDON

FRANCIS NEWTON SOUZA (1924-2002)

Durgadevi

Closed23 March 2010

Price Realised

USD 98,500

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FRANCIS NEWTON SOUZA (1924-2002)
Durgadevi
signed and dated 'Souza 74' (center left); further signed, inscribed, titled and dated 'F. N. SOUZA DURGADEVI 1974 OIL ON CANVAS BOARD 25 X 30' (on the reverse)
oil on canvas laid on board
29 3/8 x 24 5/8 in. (74.8 x 62.8 cm.)
Painted in 1974

Acquired directly from the artist

Specialist note

'Take delight in the welfare of others' The Bhagavad Gita sings. I want to delight my fellow men with swooning, swirling colour applied on canvas with the energy of pure Joy [...] colour is the staff of life, for man does not live on bread alone.
(F. N. Souza, extract from diary: quoted in a letter to Liselotte Souza, 3 June 1971)
Born in Catholic Goa, Durgadevi shows Souza exploring Hindu mythology in 1974, inspired by having read Bhagavad Gita.