Husain Baba at a Dubai Fair

It’s the city where MF Husain zipped past on the roads in his red Ferrari and lived after departing India,his own zameen. For the residents of his apartment complex at the upmarket Emaar Towers in Dubai,MF Husain was ‘Baba Uncle’,the cubist artist from India who loved dining at the Noodle House in Emirates Towers. Nine months after one of India’s most important artists breathed his last,Dubai will pay tribute to him. The venue is the region’s most prominent art fair,Art Dubai. In its sixth year,the four-day fair that will open on March 21,will feature a retrospective of Husain’s work,organised by Grosvenor Vadehra Art Gallery.

In the 40 sq m stall at the fair,the London-based gallery will showcase 12 oils by the artist. “We have been participating in the fair since its inception and every year during our visit we spent time with Husain at his apartment in Dubai. It seemed like a befitting place for the retrospective,” says Conor Macklin of Grosvenor,adding,“The collection will represent different periods,from the 1950s to the ’90s.” If a 1963 Untitled (Three Heads — Rajasthan) has Rajasthani women,the 1961 canvas Horses depicts Husain’s interest in depicting stallions. Films that introduce people to the life and times of Husain will also be screened at the stall. The line-up includes Vinod Bhardwaj’s short film Energy Enigma Exile Husain and Mustafa Husain’s Husain at Work and Play.

Grosvenor is one of the 75 galleries participating in the fair. Indian galleries at the fair are Chemould Prescott Road (Mumbai),Experimenter (Kolkata),Galerie Mirchandani + Steinruecke (Mumbai) and Seven Art Limited (Delhi).