Lot 32: JIVYA SOMA MASHE

JIVYA SOMA MASHE B. 1934 UNTITLED Mixed media on cloth 100.5 by 84.5 cm. (39 7/8 by 33 1/4 in.)

Jivya Soma Mashe was one of the first artists specializing in tribal and folk art to gain international recognition. His works have been exhibited at several notable museums including the Centre Pompidou and the Museum Kunst Palast.

His works often depict scenes of hunting, fishing, farming, festivals and dances, populated by figures, trees and animals. The graphic vocabulary of these works consists of the circle, triangle and the square. The circle represents the moon and the sun; the triangles are sourced from mountains and trees whereas the square symbolizes an enclosure or piece of land. Human figures are composed of two adjacent triangles in the shape of an hourglass, complete with spindly limbs and small heads.

Advancements in media and technology have led Mashe to evolve his work accordingly. The rice flour paste used as paint by the Warli folk artists decades ago, has been replaced by white gouache, and works originally painted on walls are now being created on cloth.