Townscape

1991

This image shows a townscape interspersed with buildings and trees. The primary colours here are yellow, green, black and ash – while the signature ‘Souza-esque’ style of blunt, cruel humour is lent by the powerful strokes of green and yellow, fierce lines and bold swaths of ash.

Souza believed that art offered the only respite for man, who would die of boredom in the absence of it. His works betray this sentiment; every piece of his artistic repertoire is charged with his lived moments, every piece portrays an overflowing passion. Brought up in a strictly Catholic environment, expelled from both school and college for his rebellious and ‘blasphemous’ nature, Souza would go on to become a founding member of the Progressive Artists Group and one of the most sought-after artists in the international art markets. His blunt, extreme style, borrowing from spirits of cubism and sculptures of Indian classical traditions, found form in many types – nudes, landscapes, ‘heads’, portraits as well as religious themes.

Title
Townscape
Period
1991
Artist
F. N. Souza
Medium
Paper Acrylic on Paper
Dimensions
70.5 cm x 85.5 cm
Accession No.
2015.1.154