''Untitled'', more commonly referred to as ''The Blue Lady'', 1999–2002, is a carved

teak Teak (''Tectona grandis'') is a tropical hardwood tree species in the family Lamiaceae. It is a large, deciduous tree that occurs in mixed hardwood forests. ''Tectona grandis'' has small, fragrant white flowers arranged in dense clusters ( pan ...

wood, metal, and indigo

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable ...

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' fin ...

-based artist Navjot Altaf. "Last Chance to See Bright Oriental Star"
''Royal Ontario Museum''. May 20, 2011. Retrieved on 18 February 2013. The artwork represents a goddess of

fertility Fertility is the capability to produce offspring through reproduction following the onset of sexual maturity. The fertility rate is the average number of children born by a female during her lifetime and is quantified demographically. Fertili ...

and is painted bright blue, a traditional

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

colour symbolizing

divinity Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine< ...

. "Iconic: Blue Lady (Video)"
''Royal Ontario Museum''. Retrieved on 18 February 2013. The larger than life sculpture is also an illustration of the "challenges faced by women who try to claim recognition for their knowledge in parts of

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

." This contemporary South Asian work can be seen in the Sir Christopher Ondaatje South Asian Gallery of The Royal Ontario Museum in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

, Canada. Notably, the sculpture is listed as one of the ROM's iconic treasures and has been considered to be one of the most important pieces in the museum's collection of South Asian art.Mitra, Srimoyee and Siddiqui, Ambereen
"Scratching the Surface: Talking About Contemporary South Asian Art in Toronto"
, '' Nukta Art Magazine''. Retrieved on 18 February 2013. In 2003, (Untitled) ''The Blue Lady'' was exhibited at Talwar Gallery in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, which currently represents Altaf, in her first solo exhibition in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

entitled ''In Response To...''. The sculpture was installed alongside other human figures, similar in their monumental scale and brilliant

indigo Indigo is a deep color close to the color wheel blue (a primary color in the RGB color space), as well as to some variants of ultramarine, based on the ancient dye of the same name. The word "indigo" comes from the Latin word ''indicum'', m ...

color, in what was an almost theatre-like setting; together, the solid, confident female figures became iconic presences, whose insistent physicality worked to "subvert...the narrative of patriarchal dominance and transcending the modes of art practices." The exhibition was instrumental in illuminating the gender-based concerns of Altaf's work, which questions the accepted language of eroticism, sexuality, and domesticity through the creation of figures, like (Untitled) ''The Blue Lady'', of anomalous femininity.

Description

The sculpture explores contrasting ideas in South Asian culture while providing a contemporary take on traditional South Asian art. The wood from which the statue is crafted, along with the indigo blue colour that it is painted, are symbolic nods to the handicraft industries of South Asia. The buxom female form is also seen readily in historical South Asian arts. Through the combination of the handcrafted and industrial, the past and present are brought together and contrasted without a recognizable resolution. Among the influences cited for this sculpture are, "village witch-trials, fertility goddesses, and the indigo trade." The sculpture is also referred to as "Kunti", after a woman in the Adivasi community in Bastar,

that was part of Altaf's inspiration for the artwork. In this case, the woman was declared a witch and put on display to be humiliated in public. Altaf describes this real-life woman, Kunti, as a normal, confident woman, who was dehumanized for possessing knowledge. Altaf started off by drawing the figure, then used clay to model it. The final sculpture, based on the clay model, is carved out of

wood. Since it was not possible to carve the entire sculpture from one piece of wood, Altaf carved the torso and head as one piece, while the arms and legs have been carved separately. The body of the sculpture is not clothed, but bare. Her hands are stretched in mudra; one fist clenched, thumb outside fist, and the other hand open.Lal, Preeti Verma
"India found in Toronto’s museums"
''

India Post India Post is a government-operated postal system in India, part of the Department of Post under the Ministry of Communications. Generally known as the Post Office, it is the most widely distributed postal system in the world. Warren Hastings ...

''. July 27, 2012. Retrieved on 19 February 2013. This symbolizes that she has knowledge in the grasped hand, and has the ability to receive more, while also dispersing information with the other open hand. ''The Blue Lady'' sits atop a vintage bottle drying rack; the inspiration for which Altaf drew from artist

Marcel Duchamp Henri-Robert-Marcel Duchamp (, , ; 28 July 1887 – 2 October 1968) was a French painter, sculptor, chess player, and writer whose work is associated with Cubism, Dada, and conceptual art. Duchamp is commonly regarded, along with Pablo Picasso ...

's readymades, specifically his first readymade, the bottle drying rack.

References

External links

Talwar Gallery, ''Navjot Altaf: In Response To...''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blue Lady (Untitled Sculpture) Collections of the Royal Ontario Museum Indian contemporary art Sculptures of women in Ontario