Description

We are pleased to present a rare and exquisite work by the artist Nirmala Desai painted in the Bombay Revivalist style. The work, executed circa 1950's, is sarcastically titled 'Sajag Prahari' which translates to 'Alert Sentinal'. The protagonist is a woman, depicted resting her head on the staff, accompanied by her dog towards lower right, who is still keeping watch gazing outwards while the woman takes a moment to rest. There is an hourglass placed on a shelf to the top left which adds to the overall mood of the work. The work demonstrates the artist's proficiency over the medium, where she not only paints the woman's hair, skin tone of the torso, jewellery and costume in astounding detail, but also engenders a tactile quality to these elements.