In Village Deity, a standing figure with outstretched arms looks on frontally at the viewer, recalling Christ. The body is rendered in the flat and consists of abstracted forms, with just the face receiving some depth by being slightly set in so that its contours and markings emerge in bas relief. Noted sculptor S. Dhanapal, makes a conscious reference to the geometric abstraction in tribal and folk art, frequently using such shapes as triangles, semi-circles, circles and the line in his work.
published references
Singh, Kishore, ed., Manifestations X | 75 Artists, 20th Century Indian Art (New Delhi: DAG, 2013), p. 35 Singh, Kishore, ed., Indian Divine: Gods & Goddesses in 19th and 20th Century Modern Art (New Delhi: DAG, 2014), p. 141 Singh, Kishore, ed., A Visual History of Indian Modern Art, Volume VIII: Region and Identity (New Delhi: DAG, 2015), p. 1522
S. Dhanapal
Village Deity
1987
Bronze
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S. Dhanapal
Village Deity
1987
Bronze
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