Accompanied by a certificate signed by Ms. Luisa Luz-Lansigan confirming the authenticity of this lot

Provenance: Acquired directly from the artist by the present owner

ABOUT THE WORK

The kendi is a pouring and drinking vessel commonly used in Southeast Asia, especially among adherents of Hinduism and Buddhism. It is traditionally described as a vessel that possesses a mouth and spout but lacks handles. The word ‘kendi’ originated from Malay and is derived from the Sanskrit word ‘kundika,’ a similar vessel with an oval or spherical body and a long tapering neck with a small opening at its top. Since ancient times, it has played a significant part in the rituals and daily life of the region’s inhabitants. The purposes of the kendi are wide-ranging: from serving water or wine on various occasions such as dinners to administering medicine to the sick or as a water vessel used in religious ceremonies to cleanse the soul symbolically. Continuing on the themes associated with his Cities of the Past series, Arturo Luz’s lingering nostalgia for his Asian travels transcend beyond his depiction of the grandeur of ancient Oriental architecture. Even artifacts associated with the Oriental cultures he encountered fascinated his imaginative faculty. In this work, Luz’s depiction of the kendi—with its flanged tubular neck and a mammiform spout—is reminiscent of the earthenware type usually associated with the Majapahit, a Javanese Hindu maritime empire based in eastern Java from 1293 to 1550. Still evident in this piece is the reduction of his palette to black, gray, and toluidine red, as well as his iconic geometric language characterized by well-calculated stokes of lines and shapes rendered in a minimalist approach devoid of any intricacy in details. However, his meticulous technique in executing these figures—one that is deliberated and almost mathematical—must not be overlooked.