Untitled

Nagji Patel’s sculptures combined diverse elements with great ease as is evident in this Untitled work, made of granite and wood. After obtaining his master’s in sculpture from M. S. University, Baroda, in 1964, Patel travelled to quarries across the country interacting with stone carvers on a government scholarship. This exposure led him to evolve his individuated language inspired by the part-rough, part-smooth feel of his stone sculptures, evident in this work as well. As important as the composition of this work is the roughly hewed feel of the two stone wings emanating from a central cavity anchored by a wooden staff.