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Somnath Hore — featured artwork

Introduction

Zodiac sign
Aries
Age
85
Place of Birth
Barama, Chittagong, Undivided India | Present-day Bangladesh
Place of Death
Santiniketan, West Bengal, India
Spouse(s)
Reba hore
Children
Daughter chandana hore
State Country of Birth
Undivided India | Present-day Bangladesh
State Country of Death
West Bengal, India

Exhibitions

  1. 1960

    1. Lugano International Graphics Biennale, Switzerland
  2. 1962

    1. Print Biennale Tokyo, Japan
    2. Venice Biennale, Italy
  3. 1963

    1. Sao Paulo Biennale, Brazil
  4. 1968

    1. Biennale of Graphic Arts, Warsaw, Poland
    2. Kolkata, India
    3. First Triennale India, Lalit Kala Akademi, Rabindra Bhavan, New Delhi, India
  5. 1979

    1. Somnath Hore Sculpture, Art Heritage, New Delhi, India
  6. 1980

  7. 1982

    1. Group Show, Art Heritage, New Delhi, India
  8. 1984

  9. 1985

  10. 1986

    1. Visions, Birla Academy of Art and Culture, Kolkata, India
  11. 1987

  12. 1991

    1. National Exposition of Contemporary Art, National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA), New Delhi, India
  13. 1992

    1. 04 Jan 1992 to 24 Jan 1992

  14. 1993

    1. Wounds, Centre of International Modern Art (CIMA), Kolkata, India
    2. Wounds, National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA), New Delhi, India
  15. 1995

    1. Masterworks Collection of E. Alkazi, Art Heritage, New Delhi, India
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Alkazi, Ebrahim (Editor). Art Heritage, 1979-1980 | Journal
1 / 6

Alkazi, Ebrahim (Editor). Art Heritage, 1979-1980 | Journal

Chronicled Highlights 211960 – 2024

Somnath Hore — Barama, Chittagong, Undivided India | Present-day Bangladesh.

1960
Public Auction HighGraphic Art
Osian's · Masterpieces and Museum Quality Series VIIIMumbai · 31 January 2007

In 2007, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Mother And Child (1960), offered in the Masterpieces and Museum Quality Series VIII by Osian's, which concluded on 31 January 2007 at Mumbai, achieving a sale price of ₹15,60,000 ($35,318). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.

Hore, Somnath (Artist). Mother And Child, 1960 | Graphic Art
Selling price
INR15,60,000
56% above high estimate
Estimate
INR 8,00,000 – 10,00,000
Rate per sq in
INR 9,468
Medium
Paper Collage
Dimensions
15 × 11 in (38 × 28 cm)
Lot
60 · Os.Mum/31.01.07
1968
Public Auction HighPrint
HEART · Intuitive-Logic - The Next Step: Auctions of Indian Art - Classical, Folk, Tribal, Modern & Contemporary TraditionsNew Delhi · 28 November 1999

In 1999, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Untitled (1968), offered in the Intuitive-Logic - The Next Step: Auctions of Indian Art - Classical, Folk, Tribal, Modern & Contemporary Traditions by HEART, which concluded on 28 November 1999 at New Delhi, achieving a sale price of ₹50,400 ($1,161). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.

Hore, Somnath (Artist). Untitled, 1968 | Print
Selling price
INR50,400
Within estimate
Estimate
INR 50,000 – 75,000
Rate per sq in
INR 76.49
Medium
Woodcut coloured print
Dimensions
21.5 × 30.7 in (55 × 78 cm)
Lot
267 · He.Del/28.11.99
1977
Literary ReferencePainting
Osian's · India: The Passionate Detachment: Curated Auctions of Indian Modern and Contemporary Art and BooksMumbai · 24 February 2001

In everything he sees, he reads its gesture of tragedy. So in a crack in the earth, he sees a dire menace. In fissures in the wall, he recalls a gaping wound. Even in sensuous fantasies are sewn up in a skin of suffering. Lean bodies of men and women huddled in wan despair… they do not repel our eye; they draw us in. His artistry gives each item its kind of appeal; the sharpness of bone, the tightness of skin, the deadness of eyes, the muteness of mouths, the limp inertia of the folded body. They entice the eye in and lacerate it.

Hore, Somnath (Artist). Family, 1977 | Painting
Selling price
INR90,000
Below low estimate
Estimate
INR 1,00,000 – 1,50,000
Rate per sq in
INR 690
Medium
Watercolour on board
Dimensions
9.7 × 13.5 in (25 × 34 cm)
Lot
16 · Os.Mum/24.02.01
1979
Public Auction HighDrawing
Sotheby's · Indian and Southeast Asian Art: Including Modern Indian PaintingsNew York · 24 March 2004

In 2004, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Wounds (1979), offered in the Indian and Southeast Asian Art: Including Modern Indian Paintings by Sotheby's, which concluded on 24 March 2004 at New York, achieving a sale price of ₹3,49,128 ($7,800). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.

Hore, Somnath (Artist). Wounds, 1979 | Drawing
Selling price
INR3,49,128
Within estimate
Estimate
INR 3,13,320 – 4,47,600
Rate per sq in
INR 781
Medium
Handmade Caste paper
Dimensions
19 × 23.5 in (48 × 60 cm)
Lot
193 · So.NeY/24.03.04
1981
Literary ReferenceSculpture
Osian's · Indian Antiquities, Modern and Contemporary Fine ArtsMumbai · 19 June 2015

In varying degrees in his sculptures, prints and paintings, besides the haunting sight of an anguished struggle, it is a sustained feeling of the possibility of endurance and hope that permeates the work of Somnath Hore, whereby all is not altogether bleak. The work-process allows technicalities to lead on to a more forceful statement of sensitive emotive contents...rescuing them from immediate topicality, thereby harnessing experience into expression.

Hore, Somnath (Artist). Seated Girl, 1981 | Sculpture
Selling price
INR18,00,000
Within estimate
Estimate
INR 15,00,000 – 22,50,000
Medium
Bronze
Dimensions
11.9 × 8.3 × 4.3 in (30 × 21 × 11 cm)
Lot
66 · Os.Mum/19.06.15
1981
Literary ReferenceSculpture
DeRivaz & Ives · Indian Modern ArtOnline · 27 August 2022

The folds of skin, the bony skeletal forms remained embedded in Hore’s consciousness. It was a figuration that he repeated all his life – even in his sculpture. At the same time there was something undaunted even heroic about these figures. As if man emerges triumphant despite his vulnerabilities, despite the trials and tribulations that life has in store.

Hore, Somnath (Artist). Dancing Baul Singer, early 1980s | Sculpture
Selling price
INR21,28,000
Below low estimate
Estimate
INR 24,00,000 – 36,00,000
Medium
Bronze
Dimensions
18.9 × 8.7 × 3.3 in (48 × 22 × 8 cm)
Lot
26 · De.Onl/27.08.22
1982
Literary ReferenceSculpture
DeRivaz & Ives · Inaugural Masterpieces SeriesOnline · 19 November 2022

The human image in Somnath Hore, including that in the later sculptures, is vulnerable and timid, already rendered energy-less due to weight of the circumstances and the hunger. They cannot resist the outside pressures. They only suffer and offer easy targets for inflicting suffering. They are epitomes of fear and have only each other to give some solace. The elemental forms, for example the stick-like arms and legs are appropriate to his imagery. They resemble bones and at the same time work as armature to hold the sculptural form together.

Hore, Somnath (Artist). Mother & Child, 1982 | Sculpture
Selling price
INR40,32,000
Below low estimate
Estimate
INR 60,00,000 – 90,00,000
Medium
Bronze
Dimensions
14.4 × 6.8 × 3.5 in (37 × 17 × 9 cm)
Lot
16 · De.Onl/19.11.22
1982
Literary ReferenceSculpture
DeRivaz & Ives · Indian Modern ArtOnline · 17 February 2024
I, Reba Hore, wife of Somnath Hore have sold this beautiful piece of art - ‘Husband & wife accompanying baby goat’ to Shri Sanad Kumar Chowdhury which was created by my husband. (‘Chowdhury Bari’, Bhadharhati, Pin code – 712301). The height of this bronze sculpture is approx. 21 inches and width is approx. 13 inches. Today’s date – 13.07.1995
Reba
1995
Hore, Somnath (Artist). Husband and Wife accompanying Baby Goat, 1982 | Sculpture
Selling price
INR1,00,80,000
Within estimate
Estimate
INR 80,00,000 – 1,20,00,000
Medium
Bronze
Dimensions
20.9 × 13.4 × 11 in (53 × 34 × 28 cm)
Lot
31 · De.Onl/17.02.24
Provenance
Acquired directly as part of a collection of ten bronzes from Somnath & Reba Hore by Shri Sanad Kumar Chowdhury (Chowdhury Bari - Bhadharhati) in 1992. [Please see attached letter from Reba Hore to Chowdhury family in image carousel].
1985
Public Auction HighSculpture
Asta Guru · Modern Indian ArtOnline · 20 December 2020

In 2020, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Dog (1985), offered in the Modern Indian Art by Asta Guru, which concluded on 20 December 2020 at Online, achieving a sale price of ₹1,14,83,795 ($155,924.32). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.

Hore, Somnath (Artist). Dog, 1985 | Sculpture
Selling price
INR1,14,83,795
359% above high estimate
Estimate
INR 20,00,000 – 25,00,000
Medium
Bronze
Dimensions
7.5 × 10.2 × 5 in (19 × 26 × 13 cm)
Lot
11 · AG.Onl/20.12.20
1985
Public Auction HighSculpture
Pundole · The Fine Art Sale: Works from the Glenbarra Art Museum and the Pundole Family CollectionMumbai · 31 August 2023

In 2023, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Old Miner (1985), offered in the The Fine Art Sale: Works from the Glenbarra Art Museum and the Pundole Family Collection by Pundole, which concluded on 31 August 2023 at Mumbai, achieving a sale price of ₹1,70,00,000 ($205,615.98). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.

Hore, Somnath (Artist). Old Miner, 1985 | Sculpture
Selling price
INR1,70,00,000
467% above high estimate
Estimate
INR 20,00,000 – 30,00,000
Medium
Bronze
Dimensions
5.7 in (15 cm)
Lot
47 · Pu.Mum/31.08.23
Provenance
From the Glenbarra Art Museum and the Pundole Family Collection, Mumbai
1985
Public Auction HighSculpture
Pundole · The Fine Art SaleMumbai · 27 March 2025

In 2025, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of Brother and Sister (1985), offered in the The Fine Art Sale by Pundole, which concluded on 27 March 2025 at Mumbai, achieving a sale price of ₹4,50,00,000 ($524,714.03). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.

Hore, Somnath (Artist). Brother and Sister, 1985 | Sculpture
Selling price
INR4,50,00,000
275% above high estimate
Estimate
INR 80,00,000 – 1,20,00,000
Medium
Bronze
Dimensions
10.7 in (27 cm)
Signature
Signed 'Somnath' and dated indistinctly '..5' on reverse
Lot
45 · Pu.Mum/27.03.25
1988
Public Auction HighSculpture
Bowrings · European and Modern and Contemporary Indian PaintingsNew Delhi · 20 November 2002

In 2002, the artist achieved a new high in the auction market with the sale of The Battered Head Of A Horse (1988), offered in the European and Modern and Contemporary Indian Paintings by Bowrings, which concluded on 20 November 2002 at New Delhi, achieving a sale price of ₹3,00,000 ($6,223). This record marked a defining moment in the artist's market history, reflecting both the significance of the artwork and its reception within the broader art world.

Hore, Somnath (Artist). The Battered Head Of A Horse, 1988 | Sculpture
Selling price
INR3,00,000
Within estimate
Estimate
INR 2,50,000 – 3,00,000
Medium
Bronze
Dimensions
11 in (28 cm)
Lot
199 · Bow.Del/20.11.02
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Economics of Art

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Research Centre

Posts 1

  1. All Living Souls
    Tuli Research Centre for India Studies presents All Living Souls - Expressed in the Modern and Contemporary Fine & Popular Indian Arts Curated by Neville Tuli As part of launching the 16th Research Category for India Studies - "The Animal-Human-Nature-Continuum" we present a fascinating exhibition of modern and contemporary Indian fine and popular arts and their expression of the ideas and forms related to the dialogue between animals and humans, and the larger cosmic and spiritual thoughts which abide therein. Please visit the Exhibition and see the artworks by modern and contemporary masters such as Rabindranath Tagore, D.P. Roy Chowdhury, M.F. Husain, J. Swaminathan, J. Sultan Ali, Somnath Hore, Ganesh Pyne, Manjit Bawa, K. Laxma Goud, Krishna Reddy, Jyoti Bhatt, Rekha Rodwittiya, Amit Ambalal, among others, along with vintage and rare prints from the pioneering Indian chromolithographic presses such as Chitrashala, Ravi Varma, Calcutta Art Studio, Chore Bagan & Kansaripara.

Calendar 2

  1. All Living Souls
    ArchivedExhibitionProject 79
    All Living Souls
    Expressed in Modern & Contemporary Fine and Popular Arts | Curated by Neville Tuli
    6th - 11th May 2026
    10:30am - 7:30pm
    Visual Arts Gallery, India Habitat Centre, Lodhi Road, New Delhi - 110003
    +5 more
  2. All Living Souls
    ArchivedOpening PreviewProject 78
    All Living Souls
    Expressed in Modern & Contemporary Fine and Popular Arts | Curated by Neville Tuli
    5th May 2026
    6:00pm - 9:00pm
    Visual Arts Gallery, India Habitat Centre, Lodhi Road, New Delhi - 110003
    +5 more

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