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The Ancient Art of Enlightenment
Ann E. Berman
08/02/2004
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its well-proportioned figures and classic poses, Gupta era (fourth to sixth
century) Indian sculpture is also easy to appreciate, and great examples are
becoming increasingly rare and pricey. A 12-inch terra-cotta head of a
fifth-century Buddha is priced at $125,000 at Manhattan’s Art of the Past. Chola
bronzes (9th to 13th centuries) are considered by some the high point of Indian
sculpture. Their fine artisanship and dancer-like poses add to their appeal, but
it does not hurt that Chola females have figures like Playboy centerfolds and
are often depicted with their consorts in compromising positions. “A voluptuous
female or a couple is what people want,” explains Sotheby’s Dean. A 29-inch,
11th-century bronze depicting a well-endowed goddess Pavarti recently sold
for approximately $1.2 million at Carlton Rochell Gallery in New
York.
Bertram Schaffner, a New York collector who has given many of his
examples of Indian and Southeast Asian art to the Brooklyn Museum, finds this
aspect of Indian art refreshing: “Indians accept the body,” he says. “I find it
very liberating to get away from Western prudishness.”
While not all
collectors warm up to the more exotic imagery of the period, including
many-armed figures, Schaffner says he finds such figures “a very graceful way
of teaching.”
“To me,” he explains, “the arms represent the many
facets and attributes of all of us.” Other collectors find the jolly, dancing
elephant-headed Ganesha a charming deity. As the god of wealth and remover of
obstacles, he is welcome in any home. An 11th-century sandstone Ganesha from
central India is priced at $125,000 at Art of the Past, but prices for other
examples vary considerably based on the work’s age, quality and condition.
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