Felt-tip pen and ink with chemical solvent on magazine paper mounted on thin wove paper, 1970. 305x455 mm; 12 1/8x18 inches. Signed and dated in ballpoint pen, upper left recto.
Souza (1924-2002), a prominent Goan artist and a founding member of the Progressive Artists' Group of Bombay, developed a chemical solvent to distort images on printed paper without destroying the ink layer. His art, which blended Expressionism with post-war Art Brut and British Neo-romanticism, became increasingly popular in India and Europe, especially in the U.K. where he received numerous exhibitions, during the 1950s. From 1967, Souza resided and worked in New York before returning to India shortly before his death. Known for his "heads" drawn on magazine, poster, and gift wrap, Souza used a Kellogg's Raisin Bran advertisement which appeared in the May 1970 issue of Reader's Digest for the current work.
