Sayed Haider Raza (Indian, 1922-2016) Three Bridges
Sayed Haider Raza (Indian, 1922-2016)
Three Bridges
signed 'S H Raza' lower right, circa 1950s; further inscribed in pencil 'S.H. RAZA. / "THREE BRIDGES" / 150 / Rs 1201 / 166/0267 / 1031/ Mrs. E.P. SAMPLES / 1031' (on the reverse)
gouache and oil on paper, framed
43 x 57.8cm (16 15/16 x 22 3/4in).
Provenance
Property from a private collection, Canada.
Acquired from the artist by a Commonwealth Relations Officer, Reginald McCartney Samples and his wife, Elsie Samples in Bombay, India in the early 1950s;
Thence by descent.
This work will be included in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné SH RAZA, Early Works (1940 – 1957) by Anne Macklin on behalf of The Raza Foundation, New Delhi.
Reginald McCartney ('MAC') Samples (1918-2009) was the only son of Jessie McCartney and William Samples of Liverpool, England and Rhyl, North Wales. Born in Liverpool, MAC served in the Fleet Air Arm during WWII (1940-1946) and was awarded the D.S.O (Distinguished Service Order) in 1942 for conspicuous gallantry, by King George VI at Buckingham Palace. At the end of the war, MAC returned to university and undertook a short refresher course in economics. In 1947, he joined the Central Office of Information as Economics Editor of Overseas Newspapers, and in 1948 transferred to the Commonwealth Relations office. Soon after, he was posted as Economic Information Officer to the British Deputy High Commission in Bombay, India, where he stayed for a few years, before moving to New Delhi, India and then Karachi, Pakistan in 1956. In 1959 he was transferred to Ottawa, Canada, as Director, British Information Service and was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1963. He moved again, back to New Delhi, India as Head of the British Information Service, before being transferred to London as Assistant Under-Secretary of State Commonwealth Office. Finally, he returned to Canada where he settled in Toronto with his family. After retiring from the British Diplomatic Service in 1978, MAC joined the Royal Ontario Museum as Development officer and then as Assistant Director. He was active in the cultural life of Toronto, serving on the Board of Directors of the Canadian Scottish Philharmonic Foundation, the Canadian Aldeburgh Foundation, and the National Ballet of Canada. He was also a volunteer reader at the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, where he was the recipient for the best recorded book of the year in 1991. A wonderful raconteur, he loved a party and could enthral listeners with stories drawn from his wide experience of the world. (Reginald Samples Obituary, The Globe and Mail, 7th–8th August 2009, https://www.legacy.com/ca/obituaries/theglobeandmail/name/reginald-samples-obituary?id=41565773.)
The present lot is inscribed 'Mrs E.P Samples' on a small card on the reverse and was acquired by Mac and his wife Elsie during their stay in Bombay from Raza, possibly from the artists 1950 solo show. When Raza obtained a scholarship from the French government to study art in 1950, both Mac and Elsie bid farewell to Raza when the artist left for Marseilles, France. They were avid collectors and acquired works by Raza, Husain, and Jamini Roy, all of which have previously featured in Bonhams' auctions. Their other Raza, a Street Scene, was also a gouache and oil on paper and sold as lot 320 in Bonhams' 13th October 2005, Islamic & Indian Art including Contemporary Indian and Pakistani Paintings auction and was featured in Vision in Art (6), a review of his solo show in 1950.
Unlike the Street Scene, the Raza offered in this sale is titled 'Three Bridges' and depicts a beautiful townscape, likely Srinagar in Kashmir, connected by three bridges. Whilst the exact location is unidentified, Raza was known to have painted over a hundred watercolours in Kashmir, during his three-month sojourn to the region. (R.V.L, Paintings by Mr S.H Raza: Bombay Exhibition, The Times of India, 23rd October 1948, p.48). What makes this watercolour fascinating is that Raza has focussed on bridges to construct the painting rather than the common subject of mountains or lakes. This composition appears in other works, like those included in the 2022 exhibition catalogue for the Zamin: Homelands exhibition held at the Jehangir Nicholson Art Foundation.
The success of Raza's work is manifold. While it is aesthetically appealing, it is also subdued, an effect achieved through the limited use of colour. Blues, whites, yellows, and greens take centre stage in this work, whilst the smattering of pinks, concentrated in the foreground enable us to differentiate between the three distinct sections of the work. Additionally, the composition, divided in three sections, draws the viewers gaze to meander along with the undulation of the river. These sections represent a harmonious use of geometry, typical of his early works. All three sections appear to have been created using various triangular structures, with the bridge farthest away from the viewer as the vanishing point.
Raza's success with his work is manifold. It is aesthetically appealing and draws the viewers gaze to meander along with the undulation of the river. But, it is also subdued, an effect achieved through the limited use of colour. Blues, whites, yellows and greens take centre stage in this work, whilst the smattering of pinks, concentrated in the foreground enable us to differentiate between the three distinct sections of the work. These three sections are in harmony, and we can see the early examples of his use of geometry. All three sections appear to have been created using various triangular structures, and the bridge farthest away from the viewer appears to be a vanishing point.
His delicate brushwork and the use of shadow and light creates depth and dimensionality whilst the frenetic strokes used to create the foliage create the dynamism and energy warranted by this scene. With this work, Raza has captured the essence of this place. The composition metamorphoses into a harmonious and seamless entity, which dissolve into one another, much like flowing water and is therefore both lively and nuanced.
Bonhams extends their gratitude to the Raza Foundation, New Delhi for assistance in cataloguing this lot.
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Sayed Haider Raza (Indian, 1922-2016)
Three Bridges
signed 'S H Raza' lower right, circa 1950s; further inscribed in pencil 'S.H. RAZA. / "THREE BRIDGES" / 150 / Rs 1201 / 166/0267 / 1031/ Mrs. E.P. SAMPLES / 1031' (on the reverse)
gouache and oil on paper, framed
43 x 57.8cm (16 15/16 x 22 3/4in).
Provenance
Property from a private collection, Canada.
Acquired from the artist by a Commonwealth Relations Officer, Reginald McCartney Samples and his wife, Elsie Samples in Bombay, India in the early 1950s;
Thence by descent.
This work will be included in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné SH RAZA, Early Works (1940 – 1957) by Anne Macklin on behalf of The Raza Foundation, New Delhi.
Reginald McCartney ('MAC') Samples (1918-2009) was the only son of Jessie McCartney and William Samples of Liverpool, England and Rhyl, North Wales. Born in Liverpool, MAC served in the Fleet Air Arm during WWII (1940-1946) and was awarded the D.S.O (Distinguished Service Order) in 1942 for conspicuous gallantry, by King George VI at Buckingham Palace. At the end of the war, MAC returned to university and undertook a short refresher course in economics. In 1947, he joined the Central Office of Information as Economics Editor of Overseas Newspapers, and in 1948 transferred to the Commonwealth Relations office. Soon after, he was posted as Economic Information Officer to the British Deputy High Commission in Bombay, India, where he stayed for a few years, before moving to New Delhi, India and then Karachi, Pakistan in 1956. In 1959 he was transferred to Ottawa, Canada, as Director, British Information Service and was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1963. He moved again, back to New Delhi, India as Head of the British Information Service, before being transferred to London as Assistant Under-Secretary of State Commonwealth Office. Finally, he returned to Canada where he settled in Toronto with his family. After retiring from the British Diplomatic Service in 1978, MAC joined the Royal Ontario Museum as Development officer and then as Assistant Director. He was active in the cultural life of Toronto, serving on the Board of Directors of the Canadian Scottish Philharmonic Foundation, the Canadian Aldeburgh Foundation, and the National Ballet of Canada. He was also a volunteer reader at the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, where he was the recipient for the best recorded book of the year in 1991. A wonderful raconteur, he loved a party and could enthral listeners with stories drawn from his wide experience of the world. (Reginald Samples Obituary, The Globe and Mail, 7th–8th August 2009, https://www.legacy.com/ca/obituaries/theglobeandmail/name/reginald-samples-obituary?id=41565773.)
The present lot is inscribed 'Mrs E.P Samples' on a small card on the reverse and was acquired by Mac and his wife Elsie during their stay in Bombay from Raza, possibly from the artists 1950 solo show. When Raza obtained a scholarship from the French government to study art in 1950, both Mac and Elsie bid farewell to Raza when the artist left for Marseilles, France. They were avid collectors and acquired works by Raza, Husain, and Jamini Roy, all of which have previously featured in Bonhams' auctions. Their other Raza, a Street Scene, was also a gouache and oil on paper and sold as lot 320 in Bonhams' 13th October 2005, Islamic & Indian Art including Contemporary Indian and Pakistani Paintings auction and was featured in Vision in Art (6), a review of his solo show in 1950.
Unlike the Street Scene, the Raza offered in this sale is titled 'Three Bridges' and depicts a beautiful townscape, likely Srinagar in Kashmir, connected by three bridges. Whilst the exact location is unidentified, Raza was known to have painted over a hundred watercolours in Kashmir, during his three-month sojourn to the region. (R.V.L, Paintings by Mr S.H Raza: Bombay Exhibition, The Times of India, 23rd October 1948, p.48). What makes this watercolour fascinating is that Raza has focussed on bridges to construct the painting rather than the common subject of mountains or lakes. This composition appears in other works, like those included in the 2022 exhibition catalogue for the Zamin: Homelands exhibition held at the Jehangir Nicholson Art Foundation.
The success of Raza's work is manifold. While it is aesthetically appealing, it is also subdued, an effect achieved through the limited use of colour. Blues, whites, yellows, and greens take centre stage in this work, whilst the smattering of pinks, concentrated in the foreground enable us to differentiate between the three distinct sections of the work. Additionally, the composition, divided in three sections, draws the viewers gaze to meander along with the undulation of the river. These sections represent a harmonious use of geometry, typical of his early works. All three sections appear to have been created using various triangular structures, with the bridge farthest away from the viewer as the vanishing point.
Raza's success with his work is manifold. It is aesthetically appealing and draws the viewers gaze to meander along with the undulation of the river. But, it is also subdued, an effect achieved through the limited use of colour. Blues, whites, yellows and greens take centre stage in this work, whilst the smattering of pinks, concentrated in the foreground enable us to differentiate between the three distinct sections of the work. These three sections are in harmony, and we can see the early examples of his use of geometry. All three sections appear to have been created using various triangular structures, and the bridge farthest away from the viewer appears to be a vanishing point.
His delicate brushwork and the use of shadow and light creates depth and dimensionality whilst the frenetic strokes used to create the foliage create the dynamism and energy warranted by this scene. With this work, Raza has captured the essence of this place. The composition metamorphoses into a harmonious and seamless entity, which dissolve into one another, much like flowing water and is therefore both lively and nuanced.
Bonhams extends their gratitude to the Raza Foundation, New Delhi for assistance in cataloguing this lot.
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