Over the years, his paintings evolved from being purely expressionist landscapes to abstract ones. Look! In the 1960s Raza's style began to change and his landscapes became ever more removed from reality before becoming totally abstract by the early 1970s. For the older kids (6-10 years), draw a circle in the within a square such that it touches each side of the square. His last wish being laid to rest in his hometown Mandla beside his father's grave was fulfilled. The first major exhibition of Raza since his death two years ago, SH Raza: Traversing Terrains, is on until November 15. Saffronart will conduct its winter online auction later this month. Raza carefully crafted his career to become an inspiration to two generations of artists. Looking at Raza’s Panchatatva, I ask them to point out where the Earth in their body is (muscles, bones), or where the water is (blood-flow), and the Air element (lungs). SH Raza at the memorial service for MF Husain in 2011, in Delhi. In 1962, he became a visiting lecturer at the University of California in Berkeley, USA. After the introduction of the Bindu, Raza added newer dimensions to his work in the following decades, focusing on many different metaphysical ideas. After the introduction of "Bindu" (a point or the source of energy), he added newer dimensions to his thematic oeuvre in the following decades, with the inclusion of themes around the Tribhuj (Triangle),[32] which bolstered Indian concepts of space and time, as well as that of "prakriti-purusha" (the female and the male energy), his transformation from an expressionist to a master of abstraction and profundity, was complete. Two landscapes by modernist artist Syed Haider Raza — Paysage and La Terre 3, painted in 1960 and 1970 respectively, will go under the hammer at Saffronart’s Winter Online Auction on December 9-10. Style of Painting The paintings of S.H. Activity Suggestion: This activity is fun for families too! During his training in France, Raza experimented with a variety of Modernist styles through landscape painting—first inspired by Expressionism, and later by geometric abstraction. "My Dear: Letters Between Sayed Haider Raza & Krishen Khanna", Ashok Vajpeyi, The Raza Correspondence, Vadehra Art Gallery, New Delhi, 2013. [7], His seminal work Saurashtra sold for ₹16.42 crore ($3,486,965) at a Christie's auction in 2010. Shia Islam or Shi'ism is one of the two main branches of Islam.It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib as his successor and the Imam (leader) after him, most notably at the event of Ghadir Khumm, but was prevented from succeeding Muhammad as the leader of all Muslims as a result of the choice made by Muhammad's other companions at Saqifah. 1964: Paris, Galerie Lara Vincy, Raza: Peintures récentes, 18 November 1964 – 10 January 1965. Activity Suggestion: Make a start with this simple colouring sheet and fill it with as many triangles as possible. 1968: Cologne, Dom Galerie, Sayed Haider Raza, 26 March – 4 May 1968. Derived from the Indian concept of “Shunya” – the abstract of nothingness and yet that which has the ability to add value to whatever it is affixed to. The Bindu or cosmic egg is a symbol of primordial genesis from which, in Hindu mythology, all Creation is born Click To Tweet. [4] Raza perceived the Bindu as the center of creation and existence progressing towards forms and color as well as energy, sound, space and time. [21] His multiple works of art with the bindu is what truly tied him to his Indian roots and culture. 1976: Mumbai, Gallery Chemould at the Jehangir Art Gallery, Raza, 26 February – 1 March 1976. [18] After his studies, he travelled across Europe, and continued to live and exhibit his work in Paris. The Heritage Lab is a digital platform connecting museums & citizens through campaigns, public-engagement programs & free access content for youth, families and kids. Says Siddanth Shetty, Vice President, The Arts Trust, “SH Raza’s art truly embodies the aura of evolution and creativity; and given the adoration he commands we believe it was apt to present a comprehensive exhibit of his works. First, his mother died. Sayed Haider Raza (22 February 1922 – 23 July 2016) was an Indian painter who lived and worked in France since 1950, while maintaining strong ties with India. In 2010, a few years after the death of his wife, S.H. Raza was initially enamored of the bucolic countryside of rural France. The Piramal Museum of Art opened the exhibition SH Raza: Traversing Terrains last month in Mumbai, concurrently putting together a diverse programme of events (talks, film screenings, and workshops) designed to reach wide audiences from children to art historians. "Raza. (@MedhaviGandhi) July 23, 2017. 1960: Montreal, Galerie Dresdnere, Autumn 1960. Souza mounted together at the Gallery Cruz in Paris. Husain, F.N. Raza's father died the same year his mother had died in Mandla. A red carpet welcome for these Kanpurites. The forty-six tiles, laid in a geometric grid, represent the different phases of the sun. [33], "My work is my own inner experience and involvement with the mysteries of nature and form which is expressed in colour, line, space and light".- S. H. Raza. To me, the navel bears umbilical significance bringing us back to Raza’s theory. Once in France, he continued to experiment with currents of Western Modernism, moving from Expressionist modes towards greater abstraction and eventually incorporating elements of Tantrism from Indian scriptures. It is these geometrical motifs that make him so relatable to even those who get intimidated by the thought of visiting a museum or art gallery. From his fluent water colours of landscapes and townscapes executed in the early 1940s, he moved toward a more expressive language, painting landscapes of the mind. SH RAZA IS most commonly associated with the Bindu, a solitary black cosmic circle once described by the man himself as “the seed of all energy and source of all life”. 1958: Galerie Lara Vincy, Paris, "Raza - Prix de la Critique 1956. Raza, however, made a throwback to the Mughal period, creating jewel-like water colours, with the pigment rubbed in with a shell. 1961: Paris, Galerie Lara Vincy, Raza, 19 April- 18 May 1961. 1968: Toronto, Gallery Dresdnere, Raza – Recent Oil Paintings, 25 October – 9 November 1968. While reading poetry, prose or anything thoughtful, Raza usually wrote down whatever inspired him. The space had the artist’s work at display and photographs of SH Raza on his visit to city and moments spent with city based artists. He wrote these notations in his paintings. 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