NEW DELHI, May 19: A new illustrated book brings forth concepts from psychoanalysis, feminism and other sources to deconstruct the thought behind artist Francis Newton Souza’s work and also discusses the inspirations, themes and significance of his oeuvre.
In “F.N. Souza: The Archetypal Artist”, a collection of 21 articles or essays combining research in art history, Eastern-Western philosophy, classical literature, Jungian analysis, psychology, anthropology, religion and theatre, author Janeita Singh seeks answers to cultural constructs of life, body and sexuality.
Souza is considered one of the significant modern Indian painters. One of the founding members of the Progressive Artist’s Group in Mumbai in the 1940s, he led a colourful life, eventually leaving India to live in the UK and then the US. He has gained further renown in recent times as his paintings have been valued very highly at art auctions.
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While not all can own a Souza painting, this book featuring many of his paintings gives readers an opportunity to gaze upon and appreciate them.
“Be prepared to be shocked, bewildered, and amazed. Beware – since most of Souza’s art images overlap with your personal unconscious, you will be triggered,” says Singh.
While Souza’s paintings continue to visually impact the reader, most notably due to the exaggerated features of many of his female nude images, the author brings forth concepts from psychoanalysis, feminism and other sources to deconstruct the thought behind his work.
Souza’s paintings of nudes and heads are analysed, as the author deals with aspects such as the male gaze, the perception of the nude, and alternative ways of seeing.
As Singh describes her first viewing of a retrospective exhibition of Souza’s paintings, “…Not one seemed shy, skinny, shamefaced, self-conscious, self-effacing, shrinking or sheepish…
“They seemed to portray women more naturally than any other female portraits I had seen through Western art history. They were definitely more inclined towards sculptures of Indian temple art, but with a distinctive modernist twist.”
The author writes that Souza was “deeply connected to nature and revelled in being one with the sea, the breeze, the waves, the flowers and the trees. In complete rhythm with forces of nature, animate and inanimate matter, he expressed his innate vocabulary on his canvas with vitality and vigour”.
Her analysis is that Souza mined images from the “collective unconscious”.
Drawing on the concept of the ‘anima’ and Jungian psychology, Singh celebrates Souza’s depiction of the female body, stating that “Souza’s art imbues the female form with self-assurance and authority”.
Connecting Souza’s depiction of the female nude with female iconography in different parts of the world, the author points out that social codes and religious authority suppressed the expression of individuality.
She claims the iconography of the fertility goddess, viewed in modern times as a woman confident in her body and aware of her sexuality is what Souza depicts in his paintings.
“Souza’s vision and body of work necessarily reminds us over and over of what we have lost (a healthy outlook to body and sexuality, the repercussions) and how we can stake claim to it again,” she writes.
Published by Niyogi Books, the collection has about 130 images of Souza’s artworks in excellent colour and detail. (PTI)
