Over the years dealers and collectors who either knew Souza or made his acquaintance during his later years acquired paintings by looking through his work in the apartment. But there were always pieces he kept tucked away--paintings for example he had marked "not for sale." Nonetheless, many of those dealers and collectors can attest to the phenomenal body of work that Souza created during his six decades of painting and image making, at least half created in the small railroad apartment located in the now fashionable upper west side of Manhattan, in New York. That he continued to create large works in such a small space is testament to his irrepressible need to paint as the creative force--or prakrati--called him to.

The estate is in conversation with curators dealers and major collectors to realize a series of retrospective exhibitions in honour of Souza's life, which spanned nearly eight decades, across three continents. If the title "Father of Modern Indian Art" accorded him by India's aficionados is to have actual meaning, then Souza's reputation as one of the world's great image makers must be restored; to embrace not only his former glory and high recognition of the fifties and sixties but also his lifelong contribution to the making of 20th Century art both in the West and East. Back to Thumbnails