At Frieze Masters 2021 (Booth B05) we will be presenting sculptures from the 10th - 12th centuries and pairing them with works by some of the foremost Indian artists of the 20th century, including Francis Newton Souza, Maqbool Fida Husain, and Akbar Padamsee, amongst others. The fair takes place in London's Regent's Park from 13 - 17 October 2021.
In Indian Art the Nude is everywhere, she is found in religious contexts and everyday life. This has shocked and alarmed the West, who wonders why temple should be adorned with graphically copulating couples? "Yet to pre-colonial Indians, there was no mystery here. For ancient Hindus and Buddhists, there was no association of women with sin; and in all India's voluminous scriptures there is no Eve. Women were associated with fertility, abundance and prosperity rather than temptation, and there is an open embrace of sexuality as one route to the divine: "In the embrace of his beloved, a man forgets the whole world, everything both within and without," states the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad.
The Nude, a dark-skinned one, thus became a symbolic icon for the Progressive Art Group which emerged around the time of Independence in 1947. Francis Newton Souza wrote; "I was… brought up (by the colonials) to believe that Hindu Sculpture and Mogul Paintings were graven images of the heathen."
The morals of the West and the perception of the Nudes Sinful sunk deep into Indian culture during the Empire or the Raj. The aim is to highlight the beauty and history of Indian antiquities and to challenge the negative view of nudity that is still deeply rooted in India. The Victorian bugs and fleas that Souza rallied and cried against are still very much alive and active but in other forms."
Preview days
Wednesday, 13 & Thursday, 14 October
11am - 7pm (By invitation)
Opening days and Hours
Friday, 15 & Saturday, 16 October
11am - 7pm
Sunday, 17 October
11am - 6pm
During Frieze the exhibition 'SUPER NATURAL, New Work by Faiza Butt' will be on display at the gallery.
The installation 'Lovers in The Regent's Park' by Rasheed Araeen is on display as part of Frieze Sculpture.
