The public is getting its first chance to see some of the last works of Maqbool Fida Husain, sometimes called "the Picasso of India."
Husain spent his final years in self-imposed exile from India before he died in London in 2011, but his work bears no trace of rancor toward the country of his birth. Instead, the nine paintings on view at London's Victoria & Albert Museum celebrate Indian civilization in its fullest glory, with brightly colored, chaotic scenes ranging from family life to festivals.
In 2008, London-based Usha Mittal, wife of Indian-origin steel baron Lakshmi Mittal, commissioned Husain to undertake the colossal task of putting India's history down on canvas—initially envisioned as a series of 32 triptychs. "To me, there was no artist more appropriate to paint the history of India," said Ms. Mittal.
