ATUL DODIYA (B. 1959)

An excellent example of the straightforward style which defined his oeuvre in the 1980s and first brought him critical acclaim, this work by Atul Dodiya is from an important series featuring a stark interior and a single central figure. Taking cues from the 2-dimensional candy colored pop of David Hockney, Untitled depicts a man studying a work of art. In a conversation with the artist, he explained that as a student he would frequent the Jehangir Art Gallery in Mumbai. As people from all walks of life visited the gallery, Dodiya became curious of the layman's or non-art students interaction with art. Be it a villager, a businessman with his briefcase or guest at the café
Dodiya began to paint these scenes placing a viewer together or in conversation with a piece of art. While his concerns with the viewer and their understanding and interpretation of art continue untill today, 1987, was a particularly significant year for the artist and it was then that he first began to feel a sense of resolution on his canvases, enjoying the dialogue he created and process that he had undertaken to represent it.