Oil on canvas, 140cmx109cm , sold
The sailboat symbolises a journey towards an unknown future. The absence of the sea in the painting suggests travel through time and space, but in no particular direction.
This is a study in perspective, colour and composition, and the painting of reflections on metal.
Every painting at that time was a lesson. This was a real boat sailing in the blue waters of the Mediterranean. This painting took me a month in the midst of high summer heat!
When I finished it, I decided that the painting should be even more glossy. I took out my Dammar varnish and put a thick layer on the canvass. Before the gloss could dry the summer heat whipped up a tremendous dust storm and before I knew it the painting had a thick brown layer on it. It took hours to clean and then I waited until I was sure there were no more storms.
A few years later the buyer wanted me to clean the painting again and sent it to me and that was a mistake. The dust storms in New Delhi have since reduced but have been replaced by smog! As I keep painting I learn and my frame of mind changes so when I got my old painting back I worked on it again and deepened and brightened the colours. I was already on the slow track of brighter luminous colours. The buyer was a big organisation and nobody noticed that the painting had changed!
My mother, who is a tapestry weaver, really liked this painting. She made a beautiful tapestry based on it that is just the same size as the original. It is included here.