Souza’s Iconoclastic Vision

Souza’s art is fraught with an edgy tension which makes his febrile figures taut and virile. Men and women, cardinals, popes and houses are all on the edge of an abyss which threatens to tear them asunder. Yet their tensile forms are encapsulated by a whiplash boundary.

In this exhibition, which will consist of about two hundred oils, pen and ink drawings, chemical paintings and watercolours, representing different phases of his career, we see the master’s works at his demonic best. Souza’s belief that in dredging up the dragon from deep within rather than suppressing it, one is able to confront and ultimately vanquish it,lies at the heart of his creativity. The presence of evil in his work jolts complacency and brings an acute awareness of its lurking influence on human beings. In this exhibition we have his ghoulish heads, frankly sexual women who are also capable of epic heights, blistering, chaotic landscapes and stormy houses made in forceful, frenzied strokes. A special focus in the show will be on the fractured faces which created his masterly language of art. There will also be a showcasing of his women through the decades as his frankly candid vision unveiled the hypocricy which exists in society.

The exhibition curated by Yashodhara Dalmia from the Dhoomimal Gallery collection, will have a detailed catalogue with an essay by her accompanied by sixty visuals selected from the large Souza retrospective. Gallery walks, film screenings, panel discussions and works by contemporary artists in synergy with the master will be specially featured during the show.