The Souza Years

The name,Ida Kar,might not ring a bell with most Indian art aficionados,but the Armenian photographer spent an intense period with painter FN Souza

The name,Ida Kar,might not ring a bell with most Indian art aficionados,but the Armenian photographer spent an intense period with painter FN Souza,the enfant terrible of the Progressive Artists Group. She photographed him at the height of his career,in the 1950s and 60s in his studio,against his rather confrontational nudes.

A selection of her photographs are now on display at British Councils re-opened Queens Gallery,at Kasturba Gandhi Marg. Hosted in association with Grosvenor Vadehra Gallery,the exhibition titled Ida Kar: Portraits of FN Souza runs parallel to a retrospective of the late photographer at National Portrait Gallery in London.

While Souzas artwork needs no introduction,a discussion about his London years,held at the British Council on Tuesday,had the audience hooked. On the dais were writer and curator Yashodhara Dalmia and artist Krishen Khanna.

This was the period when his works reached their apogee. Kars photographs show Souza in his studio,looking very dapper in a three-piece suite,counterpoised against his garish heads, said Dalmia. She added,Through these portraits,Kar puts forth in a very skilled manner how Souza became a commentator,like artists Francis Bacon and Graham Sutherland,on society and the evil that existed within human beings. During this period,Souza was bringing out the anguish and despair in post world war London.

After spending some time in Paris,Kar,on the other hand,moved to Cairo,where she established her photographic studio,Idabel. She went on to become a well-know portraitist of artists and writers and some of her works are considered important social documents of cultural life in post-war Britain.

The exhibition at Queens Gallery,British Council,is on till October 15.

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