Krishna Reddy

Chester and Davida Herwitz Collection
Acquired by Aicon Gallery, New York
Acquired from the above 

Wisconsin-Madison, Elvehjem Art Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Atelier 17, 1977 (another from the edition)
New York, Bronx Museum of the Arts, Krishna Reddy: A Retrospective, 5 November 1981 - 28 February 1982 (another from the edition)
Paris, Galerie de la Bouquinerie de l’Institut, Krishna Reddy: La Force Vita, 2009 (another from the edition) 
New Delhi, Indira Gandhi Center for the Arts, The Embodied Image - Krishna Reddy A Retrospective, 20 November 2011- 21 January 2012 (another from the edition)

Exhibition catalogue, Krishna Reddy: A Retrospective, Bronx Museum of the Arts, New York, 1981, illustration p. 30 (another from the edition)

Minor buckling is inherent to the printmaking process. This work is in very good condition as viewed. This work is in a temporary frame. It has not been inspected outside its frame.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Krishna Reddy first trained to be a mathematician and scientist. He then went on to study art at Santiniketan, which is where he first learned to make black and white etchings. After a sojourn at the Slade School of Fine Arts and a foray into sculpture in Milan with Ossip Zadkine and Marino Marini, he returned to printmaking and pioneered a new printing technique. He layered color on a printing plate simultaneously, so that they could be superimposed, yet their different viscosities would naturally cause them to separate, achieving a spectacular effect and eliminating the need to apply one color to the plate at a time. As he developed his visual vocabulary further, in the late 1960s, Reddy also began to use power tools to get better definition with his lines. These innovations with line and color are visible in the current work. The subject of his prints also turned towards highlighting social conflict and he decided to use his art as a mode of protest. Falling Figure from 1973 consists of 'A formation of carved figures arranged into a cathedral structure with a seated figure pointing at a falling human being. The whole plate is a carving.' (Krishna Reddy: A Retrospective, The Bronx Museum of the Arts, New York, 1985, p. 71) While the subject matter is foreboding, subtle and beautiful lines intersect and interconnect, creating a harmonious and delicate composition that reveals Reddy's true mastery over this medium. Another edition of this print is in the permanent collection of the British Museum, London.