The Archetypal Artist, a collection of essays on the life and art of F.N. Souza, invites readers to the collective unconscious party; a high voltage zone consisting of stark art images and commentary. Be prepared to be shocked, bewildered, and amazed. Beware—since most of Souza’s art images overlap with your personal unconscious, you will be triggered. Everything you have repressed and rejected will stare back at you in full glory. As the shadows and multivalent archetypes come alive and begin dancing, be strong to hold aloft the light of your own consciousness. This is what Souza did when confronted by the collective unconscious. He began mining images from it, giving them form on his canvas, culminating in a journey towards individuation and wholesomeness.

This collection of 21 essays combining research in art history, Eastern–Western philosophy, classical literature, Jungian analysis, psychology, anthropology, religion and theatre began as a personal quest by the author to seek answers to cultural constructs of life, body and sexuality. The conditioned and structured lives of men and women in society troubled her. Authoritarian narratives from religion and state thwarted attempts to attain autonomy at every step. The path to spiritual enlightenment was strewn with doubts and finding a synthesis of East and West was challenging. The tryst with Souza’s art began with questions, but the very first interlude was cathartic. Embark on a subjective journey into the world of F.N. Souza.

About the Author: Janeita Singh is an academician turned literary/art critic. Her writing is based on the belief of ‘critic as an artist’, through which she hopes to generate new perspectives of ways of seeing. With her interest in interdisciplinary research, she endeavours to morph inquiry into a webbed storytelling format to reach the general and inquisitive reader. This monograph is her debut non-fiction book based on a 12-year research project, begun in 2012.