PIRAJI SAGARA | LINGAM II

Acquired from Jehangir Art Gallery, Bombay, 1970

Thence by descent

Bombay, Jehangir Art Gallery, Piraji Sagara, 4 - 22 December 1970

Piraji Sagara was born in 1931 in Ahmedabad. His family hailed from Rajasthan’s Sagara community, known for their skill in cutting and shaping objects out of wood. He trained at the Sir J.J. School of Art, Bombay, and taught at the School of Architecture in Ahmedabad, on the invitation of architect B. V. Doshi. Sagara’s work has been exhibited in Europe, Japan and India, and at the 1971 Sao Paulo Biennale. Throughout his career, Sagara’s artistic practice has remained tied to the woodwork of his forebears. His initial experiments with ornamental scrap, metal and wood developed into his distinctive ‘wood collages’. These works have served to raise the craft traditions of his ancestors to the level of high art. The current lot, an expert amalgam of a variety of materials, is a richly sculptural work, which brilliantly showcases Sagara’s accomplished mastery of his craft.