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A Balasubramaniam is a sculptor, painter, and printmaker known for the simplicity and minimalism of his works, which play with
illusion and perception to explore notions of the self. He has developed a unique visual language through an ingenious use of
texture, light, contour and colour. The present lot depicts two arms, cast by the artist using his own body, rupturing a smooth
exterior to expose the depths within. This casting technique balances a somewhat “detached objectivity and a clean, almost
cool aesthetic” with a poignant and meaningful personal element. (Suhasini Kejriwal,
A Balasubramaniam: Constructions
,
New
York: Talwar Gallery, 2002)
49
A BALASUBRAMANIAM
(b. 1971)
Exposed self
2004
Fiberglass cast from self, acrylic and PVC
25.5 x 45 x 10 in (64.8 x 114.3 x 25.4 cm)
$ 16,220 ‒ 20,275
Rs 12,00,000 ‒ 15,00,000
“I was exploring trace as subject... [a] trace of me being in this body by
doing a direct cast of myself. In casting myself, my thinking process, the
art object and the process of art become one. These sculptures are an
effort to fill the gap between who I am and what I do. It was almost
like performance... like capturing a three‒dimensional photograph of me
being in this body or making a fossil for the future.”
A BALASUBRAMANIAM
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