Sensibility Objectified: The Sculptures of Sarbari Roy Choudhury

The sculptural sensibility of Sarbari Roy Choudhury represented in this monograph is figurative and animated, revealing the artist's connection with the Indian traditions of sculpture, despite the influences from his contacts with the West. Roy Choudhury is a modeller in the best modernist tradition, for whom sculpture is the magical act of turning clay into flesh. Like the work of many modern artists his figures often seem to exist out side the rationale of naturalism, but they are seldom dehumanised. Imbued with the organic, they are lyrically transformed and not expressively transfixed. A figurative sculptor, who pursues perfection, he is also a portraitist of great sensitivity, for whom music is the greatest inspiration. Some of his best works are of classical musicians -- Bade Gulam Ali, Ali Akar Khan, Siddeshwari Devi and Kesarbai. Starting from the 1950s, the monograph traces his work of each decade, revealing the artistic journey of one of India's leading sculptors.