the indian portrait-v

THE INDIAN PORTRAIT-V
Colonial influence on Raja Ravi Varma
and his Contemporaries
From the collection of
Anil Relia
Exhibition
18 to 23 November, 2014
Amdavad ni Gufa
Hutheesing Visual Arts Centre
Kanoria Centre for Arts
K. L. campus, Navrangpura, Ahmedabad-380 009
Collector’s Note
Everyone in this life wants to leave behind a piece of themselves or
their life, something that withstands the test of time and is passed
down for generations. The desire to tell interesting stories that
people might like to hear, or to do work that might inspire, is the
most base motive of human existence. However, more often than
not in my pursuits of art I have found irony in such motives and
time ruthlessly taking away the stories or the work.
Most of my acquisitions are from scrap-dealers/kabadiwala who
bring to me pieces from history or puzzles from the story of a
person forgotten by life. Sometimes, such portraits or works of
art are found in a dilapidated condition or eaten by termites. Some
portraits also come to me from families who cannot keep them due
to lack of space or aesthetics and want to just do away with them. I
have come across incidents where the person, who has gone out of
the way to do something for the society is forgotten, lost or reduced
to just a portrait which even his family cannot cherish or hold dear.
One such incident has left an indelible mark on my psyche and still
haunts me to this day.
One of the largest portrait in this collection is from an old haveli
of a rich philanthropist. It so happened that the haveli was sold and
being vacated. The family took away all the silver, copper vessels,
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furniture and all that could be sold or had a materialistic value. The
portrait in question was too large and required professional means,
expert restoration and money to even bring it down from the wall
where it was hanging. The contractor asked for a sum which did
not sound reasonable to the family and they left the portrait as
it is, that is in its hanging condition. The builder bringing down
the building also would have no value for the portrait when family
members had left it.
Fortunately, I got to know about the portrait and requested the
builder for it. I paid him some remuneration, and took the portrait
off from the wall and brought it to my studio. I worked on the
portrait for around 6 months, restored it, found details about it
through various sources, obtained information pertaining to the
person and what I found left me speechless. The portrait was of
a man who had a visionary lineage but had been reduced to dust.
People did not even have space in their homes to keep a portrait
of his. That’s when I realized that the house of fame is built on
melting ice and not steel. Later, the family got in touch with me and
asked me for the portrait but my emotional awakened self could
not partake with the man and his story.
What I learnt through this instance is something very profound
and has been etched in the depths of my life. This is also one of
the reasons that makes me collect portraits and then relentlessly
pursue the history behind the person and complete the jigsaw of
their life.
thus the works have been exhibited over three galleries, housed
in the same campus. I want to use this opportunity to express my
gratitude to Mr. Umang Hutheesing for Hutheesing Visual Arts
Centre and Ms. Urmila Kanoria for Kanoria Centre for Arts,
alongwith supporting me in this initiative and coming forward in
the spirit of collaboration to provide me the exhibition space in
kind.
Furthermore I would also like to acknowledge with much
appreciation the crucial role of the various people who gave
guidance, constructive criticism and shared their truthful and
illuminating views on a number of issues related to the exhibition Amit Ambalal, Jagdish Mittal, Natu Parikh, Dr. Ratan Parimoo,
Gauriben Shodhan, Chandrashekhar Patil, Milan Shah, Om
Prakash Bijolia and Shalvi Agarvwal.
The collection in this catalogue contains portraits done during a
span of 100 years but due to poor documentation or record keeping
have not been maintained or accredited. However, any human error
found is unintentional and regretted.
I hope you explore the journey as much as I have enjoyed partaking
in it.
This exhibit marks almost a golden era in the realm of portraiture
in India and its evolution over two decades. As part of this
exhibition I had a desire to take the viewer to a journey of this
amazing development, art perceptions and changing benchmarks.
A single gallery would not have sufficed for the repertory and
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Introduction
The founding of the East India Company in the year 1600, marks
a very significant event in the annals of history. It is attributed to
drastically transforming traditional societies, like in India, Africa,
Japan, etc., affecting not just their economic spheres but also their
behavioural patterns and modes of thinking. This change also
filtered into the art arena where people started associating the west
with “modern” values, due to its scientific knowledge, technological
skill and confident social development.
Nineteenth century India witnessed a marked alteration in the
realm of painting techniques and also serves as the advent of
modernity within the Indian society. During the pre-colonial
phase and post the Mughal rule, India was heading towards its
own universalistic modernity, and in due course of time would
have evolved its own indigenous version of it. However, the
colonial intervention not only thwarted this process but changed
its trajectory altogether. One of the major changes that took place
was related to the perception of art. Due to the influx of European
realism in painting, not only was Indian art thought of as primitive
by the Europeans, but Indian people also came to think of it that
way. All forms of patronage for traditional Indian painting stopped
and art schools, founded by the British, were now teaching oil
painting and European techniques. Traditional Indian painters,
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who lost their patronage, changed their style to the tastes of the
British, and such work is now known as ‘Company painting’. This
marked a fundamental change in Indian history with the breaking
of hundreds, even thousands of years of art history and culture.
portrait artist. The artist would take a photograph of the person to
be painted and use it as a reference to complete the painting. This
also made it easy for the sitter and the artist as they did not have to
sit for hours, as well as worked to popularize the art of portraiture.
Significant changes were also seen in the realm of portraiture with
the introduction of European academic naturalism and artists
being trained in the newly emerged art schools. The methodology
of the artist for making portraits also underwent a slight change
with the invention of the camera and its usage in India during the
1850’s. While painting a portrait the sitter would have to sit still
for hours and days to get a portrait made. With the initial invention
of the camera, photography was used as an aid in the work of a
A new breed of artists also started to evolve due to the company
power and hold on the Indian land. Initially the company itself
started employing artists for documentation purposes so that they
could better control the new territory. Portraits being created
for the worshipper, to portraits for purpose and utility, were an
evolution not just in the subject of the portrait but also on the
mind set.
These artists, mainly amateur and the company’s servants or wives
got an opportunity to exercise their talents while serving in India
and also return home with considerable fortunes. The East India
Company’s presence gave them an official and social network which
was advantageous for any artist. Thus, an amateur artist with
humble origins in Europe transformed into an influential artistic
personality in the Indian sub-continent. Initially, just painting
portraits of the English in India, these European artists were then
introduced by the British to the rulers of the local states. And thus,
portraits by fashionable European artists started to be considered
as a social advantage. These portraits were also then used as a
master copy by the princely rulers, who would then commission
local Indian artists to duplicate or copy so as to circulate the
portrait widely.
Page of a newspaper - Published on Sept. 28, 1861
An Indian Portrait Painter
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This led to a kind of divide between the traditional Indian artists
and their European counterparts. It also jeopardized the standing
of painters at the Indian courts, as commissioned European artists
found favours with rulers of Princely states. Incase of Indian
artists who showcased their work at exhibitions organized by art
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societies, they were placed in the category of ‘native artists’. The
princely rulers also stated decorating their homes with European
paintings, replacing Mughal and Rajput miniatures, to impress the
British overlords. Indian paintings were replaced by oil paintings
and the perception of art changed in terms of scale, style and
subject- matter. Indian artists also absorbed western conventions of
perspectives and started to paint in oil, copying European pictures
and portraits. Indian artists started to struggle and made attempts
to find their identities with modernism and prevalent prejudices.
Initially the competition from these European painters seemed too
huge to fight but gradually many painters started carving a niche
for themselves by adapting to the western note and taking part in
art exhibitions across the country.
The “gift” culture prevalent in the country was also undergoing a
transformation due to the aggressive policies of the British, which
indirectly also led to the rise of portraits, its relevance and necessity.
General Hastings apparently sent British portraitists to indigenous
courts to paint the likenesses of Indian rulers. These symbolic
portraits were then sent to Company authorities as gifts, instead
of the prevalent mughal gifts of robes or nazr (tribute money).
The idea was to replace the erstwhile gift of land grants, jewels,
and money (sometimes used as a bribery) with a more symbolic and
highly personal form of gift-the painted portrait. Just as Hastings,
princely rulers also wanted to ‘copy’ the British by incorporating
British art into their collections, leading to the formation of varied
kinds of agencies, institutions and subjectivities. Portraits thus
played a key role in strengthening kinship networks as they were
believed to evoke a certain presence of the absent donor, aiding in
diplomatic solidarity and acceptance.
Indian art skills and techniques, were passed from father to son
or from guru to shishya. The East India Company in the guise of
having a moral obligation and duty towards the colonized and in
order to bring progress to the country announced the establishment
of art schools in India. This formal control of art education was
envisaged as a way of inculcating good taste through legislation in
the life of the Indians.
Art schools changed the whole concept of art in India as there
were marked differences in the teaching practices between the
cultures of the colonizer and the colonized. Moreover, traditional
Indian artists followed a more conceptual mode of art whereas
the western tradition preferred a perceptual one, which constantly
evolves the original formula by means of observation. Knowledge
and science were given precedence over religion and culture and
used as a means to improve the less fortunate members of the
human race. Art went from being a spiritualized craft tradition to a
more scientific and technical skill that could be acquired.
Apparently the first western art school was established in 1798
by a British resident in order to enable local painters to assist
visiting British artists. However, the school closed down post the
death of its founder. The first proper art school was set in 1839
and known as the “Calcutta Mechanics Institution and School of
Arts”. The aim of the school was to domesticate and tame, the
artists, by introducing a scientific study of art alongwith reasoning
capabilities. In 1850, the Madras School of art was opened in order
to produce better domestic artists and the British government also
offered grant-in-aid as it felt hopeful about its commercial success.
The British was aiming to gain a complete metamorphosis of the
Indian artistic scene and sensibility.
The passing of art also underwent a subtle change due to the
colonial influence along with the image of the artist. Traditionally,
However, the most important art school was the one gifted by the
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Parsi industrialist - Jamsetjee Jeejebhoy in the city of Mumbai in
the year 1856. Jeejebhoy was part of the selection committee of the
Great Exhibition that happened in London and this prompted him
to institute a proper art school. And so the Sir Jamsetjee Jeejebhoy
School of Art, Bombay became an institution “for the improvement
of arts and manufactures (and) the habits of the middle and lower
classes”. The aim was to enable India to once again take a powerful
position among the manufacturing countries of the world. The
school also became a key instrument in popularizing the genre of
oil paints.
The fourth art school was founded in 1854 by the Society for the
Promotion of Industrial Art - Madras. The school enrolled 95
students and held the first of its kind public exhibition of student
works in 1855. Thus the schools successfully created separate
division for fine arts and crafts by the year 1890 and by the turn of
the century a whole new crop of academic artists painting Indian
subjects had emerged.
What is notable here that most of the artists keen devotion to
western techniques and medium was also a result of their definite
fascination and admiration for it. The one name that created a furor
was the painter - Raja Ravi Varma. Ironically, Varma never went to
an art school but he embodied the expected virtues of an academic
artist. A self-taught artist, Varma used the trial and error method
to learn the art of mixing colours. He learnt art from the Dutch
portraitist - Theodor Jenson, and also mastered and introduced
the principle of perspective, the usage of canvas and oil colours.
Varma’s appropriation of the Western painting helped to show the
skill that Indian artists could acquire. A compromise between the
West and East had been achieved and India was once again forming
its own identity.
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A harbinger of modernity, Varma, stood up as a synthesis of the
traditional and the modern, which eventually led to the creation
of an altogether new genre of mythological oil painting. A cult
phenomenon and a national hero, Ravi Varma stood as the only
artist to receive an imperial accolade as well as the painter who
helped in nation-building. He enjoyed a popularity transcending
ethnicity, class, culture, region that has not been equaled since.
The inexpensive prints of his Hindu deities hung in possibly every
home in the country.
The demand of his work created a whole new breed of artists that
copied him and also made portraits fashionable. In fact portrait
painting had become a highly organized business and theories and
principles about the style were published. Varma’s diary, maintained
by Raja Raja Varma, also talks about the price of a portrait vis-a-vis
the size, and shows how art had become a factory-styled business.
The collection traces the history from the colonial influence till
the works of Raja Ravi Varma and the next generation in order to
explore a complex and fascinating visual history.
Shalvi Agarvwal
Ahmedabad
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Portraiture in India
by Dr. Ratan Parimoo
The art-historical study of the art of painting in India has been
going on now for more than one century. This study carried out
mostly through the 20th century has convincingly established
how the Indian painters have documented our own culture and
society. Simultaneously the involvement with portraiture, the
human face, facial features, resemblances and expressions, has
been quite considerable. The western scholars in the early years
of the 20th century have made certain assumptions regarding the
shortcomings of the Indian painters which include two specific
aspects. The first one that no independent status was given to
the genre of portraiture and the second- regarding the degree of
illusionistic naturalism.
The popularity that the genre of portraiture gained since the
second half of 19th century in the oil medium by Indian painters
(which is the theme of the present exhibition) cannot be explained
entirely due to the influence of travelling European artists working
in India. The western scholars are fond of mentioning this view,
which should be considered a reflection of colonial mentality as
well as a view completely bypassing what we have now learnt
about the capacities of Indian painters through 15th, 16th, 17th,
18th and 19th centuries. No doubt the advent of Raja Ravi Varma
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by around late 1870s onwards both as a prolific mythological as
well as portrait painter in the oil medium did renew the interest
in portrait making. Yet the phenomenon of naturalism ushered in
consequent to the new phase of art education in the art school set
up by the colonial administration during the second half of 19th
century, (in Mumbai, Kolkata and Madras) created opportunities
of employment for painters among which portrait-making was the
obvious one.
It must be noted that it was not the case that Indian painters saw
themselves in the same shoes as the European painters, but rather
that the training they received constituted what for them was the
basic art of painting, viz., object drawing, head study, nude study
and landscape. In my opinion, the very perceptive thinker-authorpainter of Gujarat, Ravi Shankar Raval, has recorded the mind set
of art school trained Indian painters during the first decades of the
20th century. The very first professional opportunity of making
an earning was to do portraits, faces, full figures, standing, seated
in an appropriate setting. The second possibility was theatre sets
and props for drama, the third was the cinema sets as film making
expanded. One more possible ‘subject’ was added with the printing
of magazines, to draw illustrations for poetry and short stories.
We are talking of the period when there was no concept of
creativity around and such ideas as ‘artist’s expression’ were not
inculcated in the art-school art education. In fact even the British
organizers of art schools had been debating not only what are the
kinds of employment the trained art students would be engaged in
or alternatively what sort of professional work could be assigned
to them.
As the emperor Akbar’s workshop (tasveerkhana) accumulated
enough experience, specific paintings required recognizable
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personalities such as paintings depicting court gatherings. Artists
with expertise in making faces and likenesses were assigned to
collaborate with master-painters and along with their names such
epithet or term implying specialization was inscribed, for instance,
chehranami (known or recognizable faces made by so and so).
Individual portraits were identified as sabi’a and the name of the
‘sitter’ was inscribed. (In Rajasthani and Pahari school portraits
often the term used is chhabi). It is significant that right from
Akbar’s rule through to Aurangzeb’s period, many remarkable
portrait painters included generations of Hindu artists. Even
during 18th and 19th centuries art of portraiture was vigorously
pursued in Rajasthani sub-schools as well as in sub-schools of
Pahari kingdoms, besides the late phase of the Mughal style in
Delhi, Audh and Murshidabad.
My contention is that the practice of posing the ‘model’ in the
front ‘face to face’, is neither derived from European influence nor
so the overall concept of ‘naturalistic’ rendering, because such
approach was already familiar to the Indian painters and sculptors.
The devices of naturalistic rendering are basically empirical means
of visual representation, i.e., what ‘eyes perceive’. Such has been
voluminously argued by Ernst Gombrich in his world famous
book ‘Art and Illusion’. The new elements introduced in the art
school training in the oil medium were perhaps the rendering of
‘light’ as an entity (as distinct from ‘tonal gradations’ to render the
‘volume’), besides the sensitivity towards the new ways of colour
applications and colour-schemes.
a significance extended even to the contemporaneous art of
photography. The rise of modernity with emphasis on creative
expression from 1940s onwards belittled the subject-matter of
portraiture and became the reason for its consequent neglect.
Therefore, Anil Relia’s series of ‘Indian Portrait’ exhibitions have
great significance.
The present exhibition includes some pre-Ravi Varma generation
of portrait-painters as groping with the new ‘oil on canvas’
medium, to the controlled maturity of the oil medium of Raja Ravi
Varma himself. The presence of the new generation of art-schooltrained painters was responsible for the emergence of Mumbai
and Calcutta as the major centers of portrait art. Interestingly
Mumbai witnessed a new development of many remarkable
Parsi artists trained at the Sir J. J. School of Art together with
sensitive art connoisseurs among the Parsi Community, providing
conducive environment for the production and appreciation of the
art of portrait-making. Temperamentally, some artists maintained
a balance between the ‘details’ and ‘over-all effects’ in their portrait
style, while some artists preferred linear contours and sharp
delineation, reminding us of traditional art of miniature paintings.
Some artists took aid from the new technique of photographic
enlargements, as if the challenge was to achieve a superior
photographic image in colour, an advantage that the painters had
over the photographers.
Anil Relia’s focus on a comprehensive collection of Indian masters
of portrait art is noteworthy by drawing attention to Indian
artists’ achievements in the genre of portraiture during the 100
years between mid-19th century and mid-20th century, not only
for aesthetic qualities but also as historical and social documents,
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Pre Art School Indian Artists
&
Travelling Foreign Artists
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second was the artist perception which was no longer influenced
by social conventions but his own artistic pursuits.
The history of Indian art is exceptionally long and superbly
impressive. Due to the various political changes that affected the
sub-continent, over the centuries, art also went through its own
tensions, ruptures and evolutions. The Mughal rulers played a
premier role in effecting a healthy synthesis between the exotic
Islamic tradition and ancient Indian cultural tradition thus
bringing into existence the Indo-Islamic culture.
However, the most important influences had been the during the
pre and post colonial period. There has been a continual change in
the structure of tradition from its primordial - traditional moorings
towards modernization. The local artists in India were involved in
producing a host of miniature paintings in varied mediums like
wood, ivory, paper, etc. The world had started to shrink and cross
cultural exchanges had begun. New sciences and new lands were
discovered and new cultures being explored.
The Parsi community as a whole also played an important role
in shaping our sensibilities. The community had an immense
assimilative and resilient power as well as the openness to accept
new ideas. Their closeness to the Britishers helped in the transition
of traditional art to the advent of modern contemporary art in
India. Art was getting academic and yet many artists did not
blindly follow this institutionalization of art. They practiced art
through observations and experimentations, without being swept
away by the fad of art schools and their curriculums.
The section details some of these artists who have not been to an
academic institution to study art but still hold their own artistic
individualism. These artists may have not received scholarly
attention that was later given to art-school trained artist, but they
had their own indigenous style of painting that was a symbol of
the rapid cultural innovations and globalization.
The European focus in art began from the 16th century with the
voyages of individuals, explorers, and travelers. Many professional
artists also started coming to India and started detailing pictorial
records based on their first hand knowledge of the continent. A
subtle change started to take place in the art arena on two major
levels. The first one being the replacement of the traditional artist
by elite artists who were also enterprising individuals and the
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Sheth Vrajbhukhandas (1813-1884)
a wealthy merchant from Surat
by Hansaji Raghunatha
dated: 1869
Oil on canvas
44.9 x 32.3 in. (114 x 82 cm.)
The dynamics in art were changing from personal to institutional
patronage and a new breed of artists started emerging. Exhibitions’
were held regularly and art schools became a catalyst in training
artists to produce works that found ready buyers. However, there
still existed painters who did not go to an art school and were
considered and exhibited under the category of traditional Indian
artists. Hansaji Raghunatha was a pre art school painter. Though
not given the attention deserved, he still was able to carve a niche
for himself for the ‘adapted’ western mode. He exhibited works
along with the likes of Pestonji Bomanji and also won prizes.
Hansaji later became the court painter of Baroda. His portrait of
Maharani Jamnabai, painted in 1878, is now part of the Fatehsingh
Museum, Baroda.
The portrait is of Sheth Vrajbhukhandas, who was born in
a Vaishnav family that believed in philanthropic activities. A
successful businessman, he expanded his business in the entire
western - central region. He built several dharamshalas and schools
in Surat and Mumbai. He was so respected, that it is said that even
the Nawab of Surat would stop his royal procession, for a while, as
a sign of respect, outside his residence. He had two wives but no
children.
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H. H. Takhatsinhji Jaswantsinhji (1858, r. 1870-1896)
Thakore saheb of Bhavnagar
Sheth Damodar Master
Kutchi Philanthropist
by Unknown artist
circa 1875
by Unknown artist
circa 1880
Oil colour on wood
27.75 x 21.9 in. (70.5 x 55.5 cm.)
Oil colour on board
27.2 x 20 in. (69 x 51 cm.)
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Durgaram Mancharam Dave (1809-1876)
Marathi Gentleman
by Hosain
dated: 1883
by Unknown artist
circa 1880
Oil colour on paper
27.2 x 19.5 in. (69 x 49.5 cm.)
Oil on canvas
23 x 17 in. (58.5 x 43 cm.)
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Seth Cowasjee Dinsha (1827-1900)
He was honoured and awarded by Lord Napier
Bai Dinbai Nusserwanji Petit (1831-1898)
A generous lady philanthropist
by E. A. Tachakura
dated: 01-04-1895
attributed to E. A. Tachakura
circa 1890
Oil on canvas
28.3 x 21.3 in. (72 x 54 cm.)
Oil on canvas
23.2 x 17.3 in. (59 x 44 cm.)
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Parsi woman
Parsi Gentleman
by Unknown artist
circa 1880
by Unknown artist
circa 1880
Oil on canvas
25.8 x 17.1 in. (65.5 x 43.5 cm.)
Oil on canvas
23.8 x 15.2 in. (60.5 x 38.5 cm.)
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Ship-builder Jehangir Nowrojee (1821-1866)
with steamboat agent Oliver Miller White
by William Henry Baker (1825-1875)
dated: September, 1857
Oil on canvas
40 x 50 in. (101.6 x 127 cm.)
Tastes in portraiture were slowing undergoing a radical change in
America as well, due to the emergence of the photographic image.
Though photographic technologies were becoming accessible,
many people still commissioned portraits as a means of displaying
wealth and status. William H. Baker was a New York native who
worked in New Orleans in the mid-19th century. He came to work
as a merchant, however after a stint with a local art studio decided
to pursue a career as a portrait painter. He later permanently
settled in New York City and exhibited his portraits and genre
paintings at the National Academy of Design and the Brooklyn
Art Association.
This portrait was commissioned by a prosperous merchant
and steamboat agent - Oliver Miller White, whom Baker use to
regularly work for. He gifted this to Jehangir Nowrojee as a token
to celebrate Nowrojee’s status of becoming a Master Ship Builder.
Jehangir Nowrojee born at Mumbai went to England to study the
art of ship-building. On his return, he was posted as an assistant
ship-builder. In September 1857 he became master builder and
during his tenure some 19 ships, and gunboats were built. He was
appointed justice of peace in 1860 and as a surveyor of steamships
in 1864.
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Dr. Burjorji Dorabji Cooper (1825-1887)
A Prince from Kathiawad
by Chinese artist
circa 1860
by M. Ollivant, British artist
dated: 1900
Oil on canvas
24.4 x 18.5 in. (62 x 47 cm.)
Watercolour on paper
15 x 8.7 in. (38 x 22 cm.)
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Seth Jamsetjee Nusserwanjee Petit (1856-1888)
by F. A. Philips (1835-1903)
dated: 1888
Oil on canvas
27.2 x 22 in. (69 x 56 cm.)
A lot of Parsis had good relationships with Britishers and adopted
the British lifestyle and art pretty easily. They integrated the
European living so well that it also filtered in their perception of
art. As a gesture of emulating, the Parsis also employed a lot of
British artists to paint their pictures as a symbol of status and
royalty. Frank Albert Philips was probably a British artist and is
attributed to the painting of this portrait. However, no details on
his biographical or artistic life are currently available.
Seth Jamsetjee Nusserwanjee Petit was the son of a well-known
Parsi trader and philanthropist who had extremely close connections
with the Britishers. He was a visionary and also a supporter and
benefactor for many schools, colleges and scholarships. Being of
a creative and contemplative mind gave him a literary advantage
and he composed poems in gujarati. He also translated English,
Persian and Avestan literature and has his name associated to the
prestigious J. N. Petit Institute in Mumbai. A portrait of his done
by Raja Ravi Varma is house at the Institute.
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Raja Ravi Varma
&
His influence on other artists
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Ramayana and Mahabharata in the European-inspired naturalism
that was in vogue at the time. On one hand these depictions catered
to the European demands of exploring an exotic culture, gaining
recognition by the adaptation of a Western technique. On the
other hand, it also fulfilled the nationalist demand by using the
same tools to assert the identity of an emerging nation through its
own iconography.
Raja Ravi Varma (1848-1906)
Influential, first modern Indian painter, father of “modern” Indian
art, gentleman painter, revolutionary etc., these are some of the
names associated with Raja Ravi Varma - the man responsible for
popularizing European realism and systematic stylization in Indian
art.
Born on April 29, in Kilimanoor -Kerala, Ravi Varma belonged to
a family of scholars, poets and artists. However, the biography of
Varma is well known and documented but what is important here is
to understand and see the influence that he exerted on at least two
subsequent generations of artists of early urban India. So much
so that he became this colossal line of distinction, differentiating
‘Pre Ravi Varma’ and ‘Post Ravi Varma’ work in Indian art history.
Even folk forms were never to be the same after the Ravi Varma
dominion, whether it is the Tanjore paintings of the south, the
miniature paintings in Rajasthan, or the Kalighat school in Bengal
- all were carried away by his style.
The Ravi Varma canvas influenced the pioneers of Indian cinemaDadasaheb Phalke and Baburao Painter, just as the opulent beauties
of Indian cinema and calendars can lay a claim to their descent
from Varma’s heroines.
And so persisted Ravi Varma not only for his pioneering efforts in
setting up a modern press to mass-produce his paintings but also
someone whose mythological prototypes have provided templates
for visualizing the culture we find ourselves today.
His immense popularity and rapport with the masses, that too
before the age of television and cinema, made Ravi Varma into
something like a tornado that swept every form of art, which
existed in India, into its magnetism.
While the bulk of Ravi Varma’s work consisted of portraits, his fame
rested on his Pauranik paintings, which dramatised scenes from the
42
43
A Jain Gujarati Philanthropist Lady
Donor of Jain Derasar, Gujarat
by Raja Ravi Varma (1848-1906)
dated: 1897
Oil on canvas
52.3 x 36.2 in. (133 x 92 cm.)
People were a very prominent subject in most of Ravi Varma’s
paintings, especially women. His sense of proportion, perspective,
rendering of skin tones and the intricate folds and texture in
clothing, especially for painting women, made him a sought after
portrait artist. Even the ornaments were painted true to the metals
and the design chosen was appropriate to depict aristocracy or
socio-economic status.
The portrait of a Jain lady here is depicted in the most sophisticated
manner, equivalent to convey the philanthropic activities that
might have been supported by her. The expressions are captured
perfectly to put across the composition and accentuate dignity.
44
Rai Pannalal Mehta (1843-1919)
Diwan of Udaipur
by Raja Ravi Varma (1848-1906)
circa 1900
Oil on canvas
40 x 30.2 in. (101.5 x 76.5 cm.)
A look at Ravi Varma’s style evokes images of Rembrandt’s
paintings. The dark background, the subdued light playing on the
subject’s face, intense expression on the face all are quiet similar to
Rembrandt.
Pannalal Mehta, was born in August 1843 and the title of Rai
was conferred on 1st January 1877. The title was given to him
as a personal distinction, on the occasion of proclamation of
her Majesty as the Empress of India. He was also the Diwan of
Udaipur between 1878 and 1894.
He was a very important diplomatic and political figure during
those times, almost icon like. A bust portrait of him, based on the
theme - a member of the Rajput clan at Udaipur, is one of Ravi
Varma’s very known and widely acclaimed work.
46
Hon’ble Justice Nanabhoy Haridas (1832-1889)
attributed to Raja Ravi Varma (1848-1906)
circa 1882
Oil on canvas
36.2 x 28.75 in. (92 x 73 cm.)
Ravi Varma followed the passion of portraiture like an expert
businessman pleasing his clientele and subjects immensely in the
process. While making portraits, he followed a standard practice
of spending a day or two in observing and interacting with the
sitter. The measurements of the face were also noted down during
this time and a sketch made. The miracle of photography made
commissioned portraits even easier to paint. This portrait was
done while where Varma was on tour to Gujarat, especially Baroda
and Ahmedabad.
Honorable Justice Nanabhoy, born in Surat, was the first Gujarati
Justice during the British Period in India. In 1861, he became a
lawyer and built a good reputation and became famous within
Gujarat. There were also a number of cases which made him
popular for giving neutral judgments. Also known as ‘Barrister’,
he respectfully returned the position of ‘Diwan’ offered by the
Baroda State. Even though his interaction with the Britishers were
extensive, he believed in Indian traditions.
48
Naoroji Cursetji Naoroji Wadia
He was director of M/s David Sassoon & Co.
Dinshaw Furdoonji Ginwalla (1853-1906)
He was a popular councillor of Broach, Gujarat
attributed to Raja Ravi Varma (1848-1906)
dated: 1893
attributed to Raja Ravi Varma (1848-1906)
circa 1880
Oil on canvas
26.4 x 20.8 in. (67 x 53 cm.)
Oil on canvas
23.2 x 17 in. (59 x 43 cm.)
50
51
A wealthy merchant from Ahmedabad
by Unknown artist (Raja Ravi Varma’s follower)
circa 1900
Oil on canvas
78.75 x 51.2 in. (200 x 130 cm.)
A look at Ravi Varma’s diary and its business-like entries is a
testimony to the kind of popularity and supposed fortune that
Varma might have accumulated. Many painters wanted to and
many were forced to copy his style of portraiture, almost like a cult
phenomenon.
The portraits in this series are an example of the painters copying
the treatment of art by Varma. The light on the face accentuating
the features, the dark background, the proportions in the features
and the similarity of expression are all nostalgic of Varma’s stylebeautifully imitated. Even the postures were similar to the ones
which Varma had already used for his compositions.
Ravi Varma, stayed in Ahmedabad - Gujarat for a long time and
spent considerable time at the Hutheesing-ni-Vadi (Indian style
mansion with courtyards). Post his departure from Ahmedabad,
there might have arose a need to paint portraits like his and thus
many artists attempted to do so for wealthy merchants. This
portrait, most probably, of an Ahmedabad based merchant has the
direct influence of Varma’s style in it. It is of the same time that
Ravi Varma visited the city.
52
Bhatia Philanthropist from Mumbai
Sheth Damodar Khimji
by Unknown artist (Raja Ravi Varma’s follower)
circa 1900
by Unknown artist (Raja Ravi Varma’s follower)
circa 1910
Oil on canvas
40.2 x 29.1 in. (102 x 74 cm.)
Oil on canvas
35.8 x 23.2 in. (91 x 59 cm.)
54
55
Royal Dignitary from Deccan
by Unknown artist (Raja Ravi Varma’s follower)
circa 1900
Oil on canvas
40.2 x 24 in. (102 x 61 cm.)
Miniature paintings were a hallmark of the Indian tradition of art,
be it the Rajputs or the Mughals. However, with the formation of a
new national identity in art and use of the prestigious guise of oil
paints, there arose a need to revisit history and write it in a more
contemporary and acceptable style. This also became a necessity as
Ravi Varma travelled the length and breadth of India, undertaking
work for various kinds of clientele. One such commissioning was
by Sir T. Madhava Rao, the British Regent of the State of Baroda,
who invited Varma to paint a ceremonial portrait at his palace. A
studio was built on the palace grounds and special privileges and
facilities were extended to Varma.
This made Varma the first generation of artist to cross regional
barriers. But not all could afford Varma in terms of time and money.
This led to the growth of regional painters who started making
life size portraits of kings, using miniatures as the reference and
emulating the Ravi Varma style and approach in portraits.
This work might have been commissioned at the Lala Deen Dayal
Studio - Hyderabad. He was the court photographer of the Nizam
of Hyderabad and would also undertake work for small regions
around Hyderabad. This would have been done by a local artist.
56
Royal Dignitary holding a shield
Royal Dignitary holding a bow by Unknown artist (Raja Ravi Varma’s follower)
circa 1900
by Unknown artist (Raja Ravi Varma’s follower)
circa 1900
Oil on canvas
40.2 x 24 in. (102 x 61 cm.)
Oil on canvas
40.2 x 24 in. (102 x 61 cm.)
58
59
George Jivaji Rao Scindia (1916-1961)
Maharaja of Gwalior (r. 1925-1948)
Unidentified Young Prince
From Princely State of Kathiawad
by Unknown artist (Raja Ravi Varma’s follower)
circa 1925
by Chaganlal (Raja Ravi Varma’s follower)
dated: 20-07-1936
Oil on canvas
37 x 24 in. (94 x 61 cm.)
Oil on canvas
40.2 x 27.2 in. (102 x 69 cm.)
60
61
H. H. Ranjitsinhji Mansinhji (1886-1949)
Maharaja of Devgadh Baria
Sir Pratapsinh Rao Gaekwad (1908-1968)
Maharaja of Baroda (r. 1939-1951)
by Unknown artist (Raja Ravi Varma’s follower)
circa 1910
by Unknown artist (Raja Ravi Varma’s follower)
circa 1930
Oil on canvas
20 x 16 in. (51 x 41 cm.)
Oil on canvas
30 x 23.6 in. (76 x 60.5 cm.)
62
63
some art school academic artists
featured in this exhibition
Rustom Siodia
N. N. Writer
Pestonji Bomanji (1851 - 1938)
Abalal Rehman (1860 - 1931)
Kunadanlal Mistry (c. 1860 - 1930)
M. V. Dhurandhar (1867 - 1944)
Ghashiram Sharma (1868 - 1930)
S. K. Pimpalkhare (1869 - 1956)
R. W. Deuskar (1869 - 1957)
A. X. Trindade (1869 - 1935)
Ranada Prasad Gupta (1870 - 1927)
L. N. Taskar (1870 - 1937)
M. F. Pithawalla (1872 - 1937)
J. P. Gangooly (1876 - 1953)
M. K. Parandekar (1877 - 1961)
A. H. Muller (1878 - 1952)
Fyzee Rahamin (1880 - 1965)
S. L. Haldankar (1882 - 1968)
J. A. Lalkaka (1884 - 1967)
Baburao Painter (1890 - 1954)
Ravishankar M. Raval (1892 - 1972)
Dattatray D. Deolalikar (1893 - 1978)
Hemendranath Majumdar (1894 - 1948)
Art School Academic Artists
65
ones economic status to donate to hospitals, public halls, schools,
dharamshalas (guesthouses), etc. Artists like Pestonji Bomanji,
Rustom Siodia, M. V. Dhurandhar, S. L. Haldankar, etc. exemplified
this style.
One of the major events that changed the landscape of the Indian
art fraternity was the success of the “The Great Exhibition” in
1851 which opened in London and pompously displayed the British
success in engineering, inventing, science and the arts. The exhibits
were from different countries and also had India participating. The
focus of rule in India was shifting from trade to military domination
and East India Company wanted to showcase to the world that ties
between India and British were beneficial and thus participated in
the Exhibition. The Official Catalogue of The Great Exhibition
states that India was allocated more space for its display then any
other ‘Colony’, ‘Possession’, or ‘Dependency.’
The exhibition was visited by over 6 million people and became the
talk of the world as well as solidly laid the ground for establishment
of art schools in India. This coupled with the influence and reach
of the phenomenon called Ravi Varma and the establishment
of art schools by the Britishers to fine tune the crude artists of
India led to the emergence of new kinds of artists and varied
demands for portraits and its usage. A new definition of “art” and
“artist” emerged due to the encounter of the colonial rule and got
internalized through the mastery of western academic training
and new pictorial and printing techniques. Art became to be offered
as a form of technical training and respectable means of livelihood
rather than a creative vocation.
Some of these artists apart from studying at art-schools in India
also went abroad to study at art schools there. They later came
back to India and served either as court painters or art advisors.
Among such artists, the Parsi community was more eager to adopt
the British lifestyle and thus many of them also earned a place in
the bracket of what was called as “salon artist”. They unlike Ravi
Varma who painted more of regional or ethnic types, focused on
painting more of ethnographic content on India and were symbols
of the Indian paraphernalia.
Art exhibitions modeled on the European lineage, changed the
public’s relationship to art and the rise of journalism created public
opinion and an art-conscious Indian society. The so called “native
artist” category was gradually and rapidly transcended by the
Indian portrait artist, known as “salon artist”, sometimes better
than their European counterparts too.
In fact, the Times of India wrote in its paper about these artists
that “unless these gentlemen’s names were there to testify to their pictures
being the work of natives of India, they might have been taken for those
of European painters. One seeks almost in vain for successors to those
masters of miniature portraiture”.
This resulted in the popularization of the realistic drawing and
it became a vogue to get ones portraits painted according to
The section contains works of the first art school artist from
India, who also went to study abroad - Rustom Siodia, up to two
generations of artists who fall into this evolutionary phase of art,
till the time of Indian Independence.
66
67
Khan saheb Manchersha Palonjee Kikobad (1856-1935)
An Educationist from Surat
Shethani Harkunwar Bai Hutheesing ?
A Jain Philanthropist
by Rustom Siodia
dated: 1920
by N. N. Writer
dated: 1909
Oil on canvas
30 x 23 in. (76 x 58.5 cm.)
Oil on canvas
47.5 x 35.6 in. (120.5 x 90.5 cm.)
68
69
Portrait of a Parsi Lady
by Pestonji Bomanji (1851-1938)
circa 1880
Oil on canvas
15 x 11 in. (38 x 28 cm.)
In 1857, the School of Art and Industry got established and Sir J. J.
School of Art - Bombay became the cradle of the ‘Bombay School’.
Pestonji Bomanji, joined the Bombay School at the age of thirteen
and went on to became the principal’s favourite student. He was
the first Indian teacher at the art school and also the Indian viceprincipal of the School. He worked as a salon painter, exhibited at
shows around the country and won several important prizes. His
works are part of collections such as the Prince of Wales Museum
in Mumbai, National Gallery of Modern Art in New Delhi, Tata
Family Collection, and Indian Museum in South Kensington.
The Parsis commercial spirit had led them to travel foreign
countries and succeed in settling there. A spirit of giving back
to the community and encouragement received due to the British
policies, made them leading merchants of their time. Many wealthy
Parsis regularly got their portraits done by artists. Bomanji’s
subject matter was mostly ethnographic and remained limited to
the Parsi community, depicting their life with easily available and
willing models.
This portrait of a Parsi lady is one of the many works that Pestonji
did for the community. Not much information on the whereabouts
of the lady could be gathered.
70
A merchant from Surat
by Pestonji Bomanji (1851-1938)
circa 1890
Oil on canvas
29.5 x 22 in. (75 x 56 cm.)
Pestonji became the Sir J. J. School of Art’s first portrait painter.
Though his interest lay in sculpting, providence brought him to
the principal - John Griffiths notice. Griffith understood his talent
and appointed him as a draughtsman on an expedition to the
Ajanta caves. He also recommended Pestonji as an apprentice to
Valentine Prinsep, a visiting painter, triggering Bomanji’s interest
in portraiture.
In this portrait we can see the academic realism that was widespread
as well as the skill with which Bomanji worked and executed his
subjects.
by Muncharam M
dated: 16-04-1897
Oil on canvas
Size: 25.6 x 20 in. (65 x 51 cm.)
We can also notice the folk hints in this portrait of
the same gentleman done by a traditional artist
vis-a-vis the classiness of Bomanji’s skills.
72
Durbar from Kathiawad
attributed to Abalal Rehman (1860-1931)
circa 1895
Oil on canvas
46 x 30 in. (117 x 76 cm.)
Born Abdul Aziz, nicknamed ‘Aba’, Abalal Rehman was sent
to have Persian lessons with a Indian interpreter at the English
Residency. While waiting there, he killed time by drawing, which
caught the attention of the President’s wife and she persuaded the
Maharaja to offer him a stipend to study at the Bombay Art school
in 1880. Abalal’s early promise is evident in his school drawings,
particularly in chalk. He shone at school as a brilliant student and
shot into limelight in 1886 when he won the Viceroy’s Gold medal.
Experimenting with varied rendering techniques, he excelled in
chiaroscuro as well as ‘powder shading’ with charcoal. It was his
mother’s sudden death that removed him from the cosmopolitan
Mumbai to his native - Kolhapur. All he carried with him was
his brief painting experience with Griffiths. In the penultimate
decade of his life, he produced his mature works. Today, Abalal is
remembered for his landscapes, but at the art school he displayed
a sensitivity to portraiture. Lack of portrait commissions and his
Quranic upbringing, which frowns upon figure painting, may have
turned him to landscapes.
In this portrait, we observe the unglamorous realism which was
not much about rendering superfluous and decorative details but
about imitating texture and the natural complexion of the patron.
74
A Gentleman
Chhatrapati Sahu Maharaj (1874-1922)
Maharajah of Kolhapur State
by Abalal Rehman (1860-1931)
dated: 1900
attributed to Abalal Rehman (1860-1931)
circa 1910
Pencil on paper
8.5 x 6.3 in. (21.5 x 16 cm.)
Oil on canvas
24 x 18 in. (61 x 46 cm.)
76
77
Tilkayat Govardganlalji (1862-1934)
on Tour of Nathdwara
attributed to Kundanlal Mistry (c.1860 - c.1930)
circa 1900
Oil on canvas
50.5 x 39.4 in. (129.5 x 100 cm.)
Tilkayat Govardhanlalji used to undertake tours of Nathdwara
from time to time. This painting by Kundanlal (c.1860-c.1930)
captures one such occasion. This painting is also unique as it differs
from the normal style of painting by other artists from Nathdwara.
Kundanlal was the son of a traditional artist and attended the
prestigious Sir J. J. School of Art - Bombay between 1886 and
1889. He was then employed by the Maharana of Udaipur. In 1893,
he was sent to England by the Maharana to study at the Slade Fine
Art School, making him one of the first group of Indians to study
art in Europe. He returned to Udaipur in 1896. Elements of the
European style are thus reflected in his paintings which is quite
evident in this painting.
Tilkayat Govardhanlalji is shown sitting in a gold and silver howdah
alongwith his fly-whisk attendant atop an elephant that has been
adorned with gold jewelry and ridden by a mahout. The elephant
has a magnificent head covering and a gold tika on its forehead.
The front end of its tusks have a gold caps. Riding on white horses
besides the elephant are two important members of his entourage.
A palace is depicted in the background to show that the Tilkayat
was on a tour of the city.
78
Shri Balkrishnalalji Maharaj (1868-1917)
Eleventh Tilakayat of Kankroli
by Nathdwara artist
circa 1900
Oil on canvas
30 x 24.2 in. (76 x 61.5 cm.)
Miniature painters used cloth as a medium to paint and used
intricate patterns and ornate designs in their paintings. However,
the popular taste that was commanded by Ravi Varma influenced
many artists to paint portraits using canvas as a medium. The
use of oil was also new to the painters as they were used to
traditionally made water-based colours. This portrait by a painter
from Nathdwara uses oil and canvas for the portrait instead of the
cloth. A demand for such works must have arisen throughout the
noble families post Varma’s visit to Udaipur and many artist from
Nathdwara started doing such portraiture.
Balkrishnalalji was a very strong personality and had a fine taste in
the arts. He wrote poems using the pen name of Krishna and Kanha
and also participated in plays. He is attributed to collecting many
paintings and photographs of aesthetic and historical importance
as well a lot of philanthropic activity during his reign. We can
see the reflection of his penchant for jewelry and his courageous
persona in this portrait.
80
Thakur Gopal Singh (1902-1974)
Ruler of Badnore
by Mewar School artist
circa 1925
Natural pigments and gold on cloth
46.3 x 34 in. (117.5 x 86.5 cm.)
The art of portraiture in colonized India compelled many traditional
miniature artists to adopt the stylization prevalent during those
times. Small painters, in and around Rajasthan, started painting
portraits in the western form but the paintings sometimes carried
hints of traditionalism. In this painting the artist has portrayed the
ruler on a traditional cloth painting using natural pigment made
from various stones, plants and flowers mixed with gum. Usually
this style of painting was used to paint Pichwais in Nathdwara.
This portrait is of the 17th Thakur of Badnore who married
Thakurani Raj Kanwar Nathawat and had a child. Badnore falls
under the state of Udaipur in Rajasthan and comprises of 117
villages and has been traditionally ruled by the Rathore Dynasty.
The ancestor of this branch of the Rathore Dynasty was Rao Duda
of Jodhpur, who was granted the Jagir of Merta. His grandson, Rao
Jaimal was granted the Jagir of Badnore in 1554 by the Maharana
of Mewar for services rendered.
82
Gangubai Mahadev Dhurandhar
Second wife of the Artist
by M. V. Dhurandhar (1867-1944)
circa 1925
Oil on canvas
20.3 x 16 in. (51.5 x 41 cm.)
Mahadev Visvanath Dhurandhar, born in Kolhapur and also called
Rao Bahadur, a title bestowed on him by the British government,
was the first Indian director of the Sir J. J. School of Art - Bombay.
He was the most popular painter of Western India after Raja Ravi
Varma. He was an excellent illustrator, skilled portrait painter, and
had exceptional talent in figurative paintings. He was adept in oils,
watercolours, pencil drawings and nearly 5000 works have been
credited to him, excluding drawings and sketches.
This portrait is of Dhurandhar’s second wife who judiciously
managed his home, giving the artist time to paint freely. His first
wife passed away after one and half years of marriage due to plague.
Dhurandhar also painted his wife in many situations in his sketch
book. At one point he systematically arranged the sketches and
bound them together to form an album titled “My wife in Art”. He
also wrote an emotional introduction to it in his own handwriting
and dedicated it to memories of both the wives.
84
Portrait of a Maharashtrian Gentleman
Sir Sayajirao Gaekwad III (1863, r. 1875-1939)
Maharaja of Baroda, G.C.S.I, G.C.I.E.
by M. V. Dhurandhar (1867-1944)
circa 1890
by M. V. Dhurandhar (1867-1944)
dated: 1937
Charcoal on paper
27.2 x 19.3 in. (69 x 49 cm.)
Oil on canvas
20 x 16 in. (51 x 41 cm.)
86
87
Malek Jiwan Khan Nasib Khan (1820-1902)
Darbar of Bajana state
by Ghasiram Hardev Sharma (1868-1930)
circa 1920
Oil on canvas
29.5 x 24 in. (75 x 61 cm.)
The advent of photography had slowly started setting the standard
for naturalism in portraiture. Many painters used photography as
an acceptable part of the image-making process. The portraits of
gods had also been made famous and popularized by Ravi Varma.
Ghasiram Hardev Sharma worked under Tilkayat Govardhanlalji
as the chief painter as well as the head of photography for
the Shrinathji temple in Nathdwara – Rajasthan. His work is
characterized by a photographic treatment of figures of Lord
Shrinathji, in particular of the face of the deity. He was also
the mentor of Narottam Narayan, who worked as an apprentice
under him for the temple. However, unlike Narottam, Ghasiram’s
paintings are very strongly marked by a more ‘traditionalist’
Nathdwara identity.
This portrait is of the ruler of Bajana state, which was a prominent
princely state. It was located in northern Kathiawad on the southern
coast of the little Rann of Kutch. The state had power over 29
villages and the administration was in the hands of the native
darbar, under the indirect control of the British Government of
India.
88
An affluent Maharashtrian lady
by Sadashiv Krushna Pimpalkhare (1869-1956)
circa 1900
Oil on canvas
60 x 36 in. (152 x 92 cm.)
Born in a small village in Maharashtra Sadashiv Krushna
Pimpalkhare came from a simple and modest background. He
did not school and study about which the teachers complained to
his brother. On enquiry it was found that the young Pimpalkhare
would draw in books and on the walls of the local temple instead
of studying. Seeing this interest it was decided to send him to the
Sir J. J. School of Art - Bombay, where the education was free of
cost. However since he was pretty young, his mother accompanied
him to Mumbai. Pimpalkhare explored many kinds of art like
landscapes, portraits, etc. during this time. He also dramatized
the life and incidents in the life of Valmiki which made him very
popular. He was offered to be the court painter of Mysore but due
to the ill health of his mother he resigned from the job. His lively
painting at an institute in Pune till date attracts a lot of foreign
tourists.
The painting is of a typical Maharashtrian lady in traditional
attire and jewelry. The gold border on the saree and the size of
the nose pin and the backdrop of velvet curtains, lends the portrait
an aristocracy. The lady must have been from a rich family but no
information on it has been made available.
90
Narsimha Chintaman Kelkar (1872-1947)
President of the Hindu Mahasabha
by Ramkrishna Waman Deuskar (1869-1957)
circa 1900
Oil on canvas
27 x 21 in. (68.5 x 53.5 cm.)
Ramkrishna Waman Deuskar, student of the Sir J. J. School of Art
- Bombay was considered to be the pioneer of Modern painting in
Hyderabad. His career started with painting backdrops for Marathi
drama companies. He also was proficient in plastic arts in Europe
and produced excellent portraits of aristocracy in and around the
Deccan region. His acquaintance with Salar Jung-III, gave him
the opportunity to become the first curator of The Salar Jung
Museum. He also made innumerable recopies of European great
masters and contributed to the painting section of the museum.
Due to the popularity of painting portraiture being in vogue in the
aristocratic circle, Deuskar was invited to paint for the Nizams. He
was the last court artist employed in India.
The portrait is of a lawyer from Satara - Chintaman Kelkar, also
known as Sahityasamrat Tatyasaheb Kelkar due to his literary
pursuits. He was a strong political persona and also associated
with the education society in Pune. He became famous due to his
close association with Bal Gangadhar Tilak during the Indian
Independence movement. After Tilak’s death he also represented
the Tilakites in the Congress. He retired from public life at the of
65 and devoted his time to writing till his death.
92
Babu Puranchandra Johri (1829-1899)
by Antonio Xavier Trindade (1869-1935)
circa 1900
Oil on canvas
70.1 x 46.1 in. (178.1 x 117.1 cm.)
They way an artist was perceived in India from low-class artisan to
an independent, professional artist was changing. Antonio Xavier
Trindade, also called the Rembrandt of the East, played a key
role in this formative period in the history of Indian art. Born a
Roman Catholic, he was raised in Portuguese Goa and was fluent
in English, Portuguese and Konkani. His paintings exemplify the
exceptional draftsmanship and handling of paint as well as the
skillfully executed composition that earned him a place of honor.
His artistic style reflects the European preference disseminated
through the British instructors and his own Western orientation
as a Goan Catholic.
Babu Puranchandra Pannalal Johri was born in Kashi in 1829 and
later settled in Patan (Gujarat). Trained under a renowned jeweler
of Calcutta, he started handling the business successfully after his
father’s death in 1850. Later he shifted to Mumbai and established
himself as a renowned jeweler within a short span. He also acted
as the president of Jain Association of India and was awarded
the title ‘J. P.’ In this portrait one can see that along with the use
of technique, Trindade imbued his patron with a sense of royal
personality, naturalism, ethnic identity, and an era.
94
Mother and Child
by Ranada Prasad Gupta (1870-1927)
dated: 1897
Charcoal on paper
30 x 22 in. (76.5 x 56 cm.)
Academic Naturalism was the talk of the art circles during the
times, especially with the art school trained artists. However with
E. B. Havell, taking charge as the Superintendent of the Calcutta
Art School, in 1896, a different wave was initiated. He professed
that an Indian identity should be a part of the art culture and that
art education should originate from the indigenous traditional root.
He opposed and questioned the training in academic naturalism.
But not many students were happy with this change of ideas.
Ranada Gupta was one of them. A 3rd year student, he was all for
the academic naturalism technique and led a revolution to form the
‘Jubilee Art Academy’ in Calcutta in 1897. The aim of the academy
was to intensify naturalist training in art education. He was open
to sacrificing an illustrious career rather than confirming and
accepting the norms of Havell. Ranada met Swami Vivekanand
in 1901, who became like a guide for him and opened his eyes on
various subjects, especially art.
This painting is a study work which he might have made to teach
students the basics of academic naturalism. It is not a professionally
commissioned work and more of an instructional piece. There is
no signature on the portrait, however his name is written at the
back. It is more like an illustrative portrait to show use of common
subjects for the students of Jubilee Art School.
96
Portrait of a Nobleman
by Laxman Narain Taskar (1870-1937)
circa 1910
Oil on canvas
19.5 x 15.5 in. (49.5 x 39.5 cm.)
L. N. Taskar, born in Mumbai was educated at Sir J. J. School of
Art - Bombay where he also took up teaching in 1898. He was the
most respected and highly regarded teacher and taught there until
his death. Through the second half of the nineteenth century, a
shift from the decorative to academic art in schools facilitated the
creation of a new social and professional category of ‘Artists’ in
India. A growing preference for naturalism, for solid drawing and
three dimensional representation, oil painting and watercolours and
for effects of light and shade, became the reigning symbols for high
art. Taskar’s paintings mirror the ideals of academic neoclassical
realism introduced by the British in their art education system. As
an art teacher in the same school, he received several prizes, and
his paintings are in many museums and art societies in India. His
works were part of many collections, the most prominent being
that of Sir Ganga Singhji Bahadur, the Maharaja of Bikaner. There
is a strong sense of local aesthetic in Taskar’s paintings, and in
spite of the rigid academic discipline inherent in the art schools,
the artist made several departures from his training in some of his
paintings.
In this portrait, Taskar has used bright and neutral tones against
a misty background, and negotiating drapery, colour and poses in
accordance to the needs of the picture, thereby making his own
little discoveries within the academic aesthetic.
98
Sheth Ghokuldas Mulchand
Jain Philanthropist from Mumbai
by M. F. Pithawalla (1872-1937)
dated: 1906
Oil on canvas
47.6 x 35.8 in. (121 x 91 cm.)
M. F. Pithawalla was India’s most celebrated salon artist. He
belonged to the village Pitha in Surat and had an extremely humble
background. He moved to Mumbai to earn a living after his father’s
death in 1888. There he was discovered by the Sir J. J. School of
Art’s principal – John Griffith and educated under his guidance.
He was trained in the academic solidities of genre, imbibing the
techniques of conventional academic realism. He portrayed the lives
and likeness of his patrons, the aristocracy and haute bourgeoisie.
At a deeper level, his portraiture enshrined the value of this elite,
comprising merchant-princes, lawyers, landowners and their ladies.
Like the European masters whose skill he had mastered, Pithawalla
communicates the sheer ‘thereness’ of the visible. His art is both
a celebration of the achievements of the present and elegy for the
transience of worldly things.
In this portrait, we can see his rendering of details through the
sitters expressions and gestures, the fall of light on his rich but
discreet clothes and the gleam of the wood chair. Pithawalla
memorialized the values of India’s colonial establishment, of
worldly success and ethical striving and of self - assurance and
permanence. The portrait is of a wealthy merchant who built may
schools and hostels in Mumbai.
100
Portrait of an artist L. N. Taskar ? (1870-1937)
Portrait of a Parsi Gentleman
by M. F. Pithawalla (1872-1937)
dated: 1934
by M. F. Pithawalla (1872-1937)
dated: 1910
Oil on canvas
23.2 x 18.5 in. (59 x 47 cm.)
Oil on paper
15.4 x 122 in. (39 x 31 cm.)
102
103
Nusserwarjee Navroji Bharucha ‘Ice walla’ (1848-1907)
Framji Jamshedji Kathoke (1851-1937)
attributed to M. F. Pithawalla
circa 1900
attributed to M. F. Pithawalla
circa 1900
Oil on canvas
52.4 x 40.4 in. (133 x 102.5 cm.)
Oil on canvas
52 x 40.2 in. (132 x 102 cm.)
104
105
Sheth Nagindas Lallubhai Johari, Mumbai (d. 1910)
Diamond businessman from Palanpur
by H. Hormsji Deboo
dated: 07 May, 1910
Oil on canvas
29.5 x 23.6 in. (75 x 60 cm.)
A Parsi artist, probably sought after by his community and rich
businessmen of Mumbai, to paint portraits. Not much is known
about the artist’s biography, however there was a photography
studio by the name of S. Hormsji in Mumbai, which might have
been his.
A closer look at the portrait gives us more of a studio photograph
image with two plant pots placed by the side for breaking the
monotony of the entire image. It was in line with the photo realism
popular during those times.
This portrait is of a diamond merchant, Sheth Nagindas Lallubhai
Johari who migrated from Palanpur to Mumbai and earned repute
in the Johari community. He was succeeded by his two sons,
one of whom was also the president of the Diamond Merchant
Association during those times.
106
Portrait of Lady
by Jamini Prakash Ganguly (1876-1953)
circa 1930
Oil on canvas
22 x 18 in. (56 x 45.7 cm.)
Jamini Prakash Ganguly was the nephew of Abanindranath
Tagore and born at Jorasanko - Calcutta. His first initiations in
art came from the young Abanindranath Tagore. Ganguly was the
product of a parallel circuit of private art training at home from a
Bengali tutor - Gangadhar De and then from a British painter - C.
L. Palmer. He never became a part of the Bengal school panorama
and was more interested in the European stylistic values. Thus,
he embraced in practice and concept the European style of visual
expression and mastered the medium of oil on canvas. Ganguly
showed his flair in various genres, ranging from portraiture to
landscapes, to neo-classical and mythological subjects. The skills
he commanded in illusionist oil painting, realist portraiture and
landscape, were all part of the essential training that marked the
formation of the new professional artist in colonial India. He was
appointed Vice-Principal of the Sir J. J. School of Art - Bombay
in 1916 and acted in this post till 1928 and was also instrumental
in dividing the Fine Art stream into two sections: Fine Art and
Indian Painting.
The inscriptions on the front of the portrait read ‘To Shailen’
(in Bengali). Here we can also observe his mastery in the shifting
gradations and variations of light, which Ganguly obtained not
just by studying nature but through the transience of the human
face, captured with relation to the changing light.
108
Portrait of a literate woman
by Madhavrao K. Parandekar (1877-1961)
dated: 1949
Oil on canvas
54.75 x 34.75 in. (139 x 88 cm.)
M. K. Parandekar, born in Kolhapur - Maharashtra, was a gifted
child. He trained under his father who was a Sanskrit scholar and
painter and then studied art at the Sir J. J. School of Art - Bombay
in 1900. Though he focused on painting landscapes, his liking for
the works of Abalal Rehman (the court painter of Kolhapur State)
made him achieve good progress in portraiture.
Parandekar is known for his panoramic views of Indian
archaeological sites and the precision with which he emulated the
European artists in use of perspective and three-dimensional effects.
He was commissioned to paint several projects by the Maharaja
of Patalia and also gained the patronage of Lord Willingdon,
the then Governor of Mumbai. He played an important role in
the foundation of the Art Society of India, and also served as the
secretary of the Archaeological Survey of India.
This portrait is an indication of the changing times and the role of
women in post independent India. The woman is seen with a book
and wearing glasses, a sight rare during those times. This shows
that women education was slowly becoming popular albeit only in
the more elite and economically strong sections of the society.
110
Lady holding a mirror
by A. H. Muller (1878-1960)
circa 1920
Oil colour on paper
22 x 16.5 in. (56 x 42 cm.)
Muller was born in Cochin - Kerala of German parentage - German
Father and Indian Mother. He was trained at the Madras School of
Art and post graduation he worked at his brother’s studio. However,
possibly due to lack of work, he had to move to Mumbai by 1910.
He won the prestigious Bombay Art Society Award in 1911. This
helped him acquire a special niche in the Indian art scene of those
times.
His paintings included landscapes, portraits and scenes from the
life of the Maharajas (Kings), historical subjects and incidents from
the Indian Hindu epics - the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. Most
of his works also carried hints of the academic style popularized
by Ravi Varma and bore elements of the Greco-roman classical
understanding of the body structure and posture. In this work
we can see the background bearing this semblance and having a
kind of mesmerizing effect, leading one to imagine a fantasy world
rather than a realistic one.
In 1922, Muller took up employment (largely out of poverty)
with the Maharajah of Bikaner, to record the ruler’s hunting
expeditions. He also travelled a lot through western India and
enjoyed patronage of the royal families of Rajasthan, Gujarat and
Maharashtra.
112
Sir Chinubhai Baronet (1864-1916)
holding sample of cotton manufactured in his mill
by Fyzee Rahamin (1880-1964)
circa 1910
Oil on canvas
84.3 x 54 inch (214 x 137 cm.)
Samuel Fyzee Rahamin an Indian painter of portraits, figures,
landscapes and murals, dramatist and poet belonged to the Bene
Israel community of Poona. He was the second Indian artist to
study at the Royal Academy and also exhibited his works there
in 1906. On his return to India, Rahamin became a court painter
and art adviser of Baroda. Five accomplished oil Portraits of the
Gaekwad family were executed by him between 1908-18.
Sir Chinubhai Madhowlal Ranchhodlal, owner of cotton textile mills
in Ahmedabad, was known for his charitable and social dedications.
He was given the title ‘Baronet’ in 1913 and also awarded with
‘C. I. E.’ (Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire) by the
government. He was the first local resident to become the Mayor
of Ahmedabad Municipal Committee. Chinubhai Baronet was a
great admirer of Arts and Literature and hosted many writers,
poets and painters including Raja Ravi Varma. His mansion still
lives as legacy to his contributions to the city of Ahmedabad.
114
Sir Chinubhai Baronet (1864-1916)
with his family
by Fyzee Rahamin (1880-1964)
dated: 1910
Oil on canvas
108.3 x 84.3 in. (275 x 214 cm.)
It is one of the rarest portraits in the history of portraiture in
India due to its sheer size and history. Ravi Varma did individual
portraits of the Baronets family, however Chinubhai wanted him
to do a family portrait. But due to Varma’s early death this wish
could not be materialized. So then Chinubhai Baronet called the
court painter of Baroda and got this family portrait made. It is
also the largest portrait by Rahamin and a proof of his skill and
the stillness of the artist’s hand that allowed him to execute such
a magnanimous work of art. It is done in the mansion in which
Varma stayed when he visited Ahmedabad. The names of the
family members are given below.
1 Sir Chinubhai Baronet
2 Lady Sulochana Chinubhai
3 Jivantika (elder daughter)
4 Manorama (2nd daughter)
5 Indumati (3rd daughter)
6 Sumati (4th daughter)
7 Girija Prasad (son)
8 Aartlal Mehta (son-in-law)
9 Madhusudan (grand son)
116
Nawab Sir Mahabat Khan III (1900-1959)
with his son Prince Dilawar Khan (1922-1989)
by Fyzee Rahamin (1880 - 1964)
circa 1930
Oil on canvas
84.3 x 60.2 in. (214 x 153 cm.)
This portrait is very coincidental as both the artist and the sitter
moved to Karachi almost at the same time.
Samuel Rahamin, a Jew by faith, married Atiya Begum (of the
Fyzee family) in 1912 and converted to Islam taking the name
Fyzee Rahamin. He also moved to Karachi post the partition, where
he spent his last years. His art collection, which he presented to the
Aiwan-e-Riffat Museum in Karachi, is a part of the Fyzee Rahamin
Art Gallery.
The portrait is of the Nawab of Junagadh - Sir Mahabat Khan.
Upon the Independence of India in 1947, Mahabat Khanji III
decided to merge the Junagadh state into the newly formed
Pakistan. But the Hindu citizens who formed the majority of the
population, revolted leading to several events and also a plebiscite,
resulting in the integration into India. As a consequence of threats
to his safety, the Nawab was forced to leave for Pakistan with his
family including the young prince - Dilawar Khan. They spent the
rest of their life in Karachi, Pakistan.
118
Jayme Ribeiro, L.C.E. (1876-c.1940)
by S. L. Haldankar (1882-1968)
dated: 1936
Oil on canvas
30.1 x 24 in. (76.5 x 61 cm.)
Sawlaram Lakshman Haldankar was born in Savantwadi,
Maharashtra. He joined the Sir J. J. School of Art - Bombay and
was a student of M. V. Dhurandhar and Cecil Burns. He soon made
a name for himself and exhibited at Mumbai, Madras, Shimla as
well as at the prestigious Royal Society of British Artists - London.
He also started the Haldankar Art Institute in 1908 and founded
the Art Society of India in 1918 with some of his friends and
became its president. As an artist he always experimented with his
paintings and thus there are quite a number of his paintings which
are attributed to him but are incomplete or unsigned. He is also the
recipient of the Lalit Kala Academy Fellowship award, which was
awarded to him by the then President - Dr. Rajendra Prasad.
This portrait is of a Deputy Engineer - Works and Land Manager
with the Mumbai Municipality. Jayme was born in 1876 in
Porvorim, Goa and graduated in Civil Engineering in 1901. He was
a keen student of the geology of Bombay and has published and
read monographs on the subject in the journals of Bombay Natural
History Society and at the sessions of the Indian Science Congress.
He donated the “Jayme Ribeiro Collection of Rocks, Minerals and
Fossils of the Island of Bombay” to the Prince of Wales Museum
of Western India.
120
Ardeshir Cawsji Engineer (1876-1938)
by J. A. Lalkaka (1884-1967)
dated: 1919
Oil on canvas
29.5 x 23.6 in. (75 x 60 cm.)
A Parsi portraiture artist whose work displayed all the
characteristics learnt under the British art education system,
Lalkaka was born in Ahmedabad. He studied at the Sir J. J. School
of Art - Bombay and was also one of its first Indian Deputy
director. Having a privileged background, he travelled to Europe
to complete his artistic education and spent time at the Louvre in
Paris. In 1913, he returned to India and set up his own studio in
Mumbai to paint portraits of the governing elite, whose patronage
he already had been receiving.
He was commissioned by the British government to paint royal
portraits, from originals in the Windsor Castle, London, which also
turned out of be a turning point in his career. Such was the reach
of his art that the portrait of King George V, painted by him hangs
at the Buckingham Palace, London.
The portrait is of an importer of piecegoods and sundries from
foreign countries. His father was a marine engineer and he travelled
with him all along the coast line from Basrah to Colombo. He then
moved to Colombo and worked there as rice merchant for seven
years. Later he came to Mumbai and started a cafe and post that
became a salesman of piecegoods with various trading firms in
Mumbai.
122
Sheth Dungarsinh Parsottam
Unknown Gentleman
by J. A. Lalkaka (1884-1967)
dated: 1926
by J. A. Lalkaka (1884-1967)
dated: 1949
Oil on canvas
30.1 x 24 in. (76.5 x 61 cm.)
Oil on canvas
30 x 24 in. (76 x 61 cm.)
124
125
Unknown Parsi Gentleman
by J. A. Lalkaka (1884-1967)
dated: 1940
Oil on board
29.9 x 24 in. (76 x 61 cm.)
The transformation of sensibilities of the Indian elite and middle
classes, resulted in the Europeanization of the Parsi community.
The community’s close proximity with the Britishers and sociopolitical relations created a dynamics that was specific to that time.
The Parsi portraits done during those times stood more of as
a documentation and creation of pictorial memoirs. Many of
Lalkaka’s portraits had formal postures, reserved body language
and strict expressions displaying the socio-economic privileges
that his subjects enjoyed.
The most striking feature of this portrait is that it is painted on
the reverse side of a hardboard, which is a rougher surface than
a canvas. This is a unique style which then layers the hardboard
with a thick surfacer, to get it ready for painting and also achieve
a canvas-like effect. This was done to bring down the cost of the
portrait, speed-up the work as well as could only be executed by a
seasoned artist.
126
Mohanlal Lalji Khusalram (1885-1938)
Gujarati stage actor
by Painter Baburao (1890-1954)
circa 1920
Oil on canvas
44.8 x 24 in. (114 x 61 cm.)
Baburao Krishnarao Mistry, popularly known as Baburao Painter,
was born in Kolhapur. He was a self-made artist and sculptor in the
academic art school style. Between 1910 to 1916, Baburao and his
cousin Anandrao were the leading painters of stage backdrops in
Western India and did several famous curtains for Sangeet Natak
troupes and also for Gujarati Parsi theaters. He was multi-faceted
and showed an aptitude for painting, sculpture, film-production,
photography and mechanical engineering. He evolved his own style
of portraiture by observing European paintings in the museums
and preferred the romantic approach of the Pre-Raphaelite painters
of the 19th century. In this portrait one can see how his style also
reflects his background of a stage backdrop painter.
Popularly known as Mohan Lala, Mohanlal Lalji Khusalram,
was born in Amreli - Gujarat. At the age of 7 he did his first
performance on stage for the drama ‘Kanaktara’, showing potential
talent of a seasoned actor. He was trained under Shri Prabhulal
Trivedi - a poet and Shri Daya Shankar Vasanji - a drama director.
He has performed many remarkable performances during his
life, but his performance as a female character in ‘Khun-e-Jigar’
was momentous. Later, he started his own drama company and
performed assorted dramas in different parts of India.
128
Ram Mohanrai Jasawantrai Desai
by Maganlal Sharma
circa 1900
Oil on canvas
33 x 26.8 in. (84 x 68 cm.)
Maganlal Sharma was a primary school teacher who got inspired
by the freedom movement of, India that had started in various parts
of the country. He drew many portraits from mythological stories
of deities and characters. This passion for freedom and his likeness
for the works of Ravi Varma, made him draw the first imaginary
picture of ‘Bharatmata’. This picture became very famous
throughout the country and he also came to be known as an artist.
He also wrote about art for the evening newspaper. There has also
been speculation that the image of Bharatmata was probably an
adoption of the same from Abanindranath Tagore’s version of it.
This portrait is of a philanthropist from Gujarat. He was also a
member of the 6th Gujarati Literature Conference and a known
figure in the literary circle and patron of art.
Lithograph
20 x 14 inches
1907
Printed at Ravi Varma Press
130
Keshavlal Harshadrai Dhruv (1859-1938)
The First Professor of Gujarati
by Ravishankar Raval (1892-1978)
circa 1925
Oil on canvas
48 x 36.2 in. (122 x 92 cm.)
The art movement in portraiture was picking up all across India
and Gujarat was no exception. Being a cash rich state, there
was a lot of philanthropic activity that took place and the need
for portraits to be painted and donated arose. Raval was born at
Bhavnagar - Gujarat and went to study at the Sir J. J. School of
Art - Bombay. There he was exposed to many prominent writers,
thinkers, journalists of that time. He learnt the style of academic
naturalism taught at the school and was on his way to becoming
a budding portrait painter. However, in the spirit of cultural
nationalism gaining ground during the time, he gave up these
influences to embrace the revival of Indian art.
He became popular and many known figures in Gujarat engaged his
services. He was also given the title of Kalaguru for the remarkable
efforts he made towards establishing the status of art in Gujarat,
a region often considered to be devoid of culture, and preoccupied
only with trade and commerce. He initiated a cultural magazine
“KUMAR” in 1924, which is still published at Ahmedabad.
The portrait is of literary scholar, Keshavlal Harshadrai Dhruv
also known by his pen name Vanmali. He translated several Sanskrit
plays and poetry in Gujarati and taught at Gujarat College, apart
from heading several literary organizations.
132
Portrait of a Gentleman
Mahant, Talaja Ramji temple
by Ravishankar Raval (1892-1978)
circa 1930
by Ravishankar Raval (1892-1978)
dated: 1932
Oil on canvas
15.2 x 12 in. (38.6 x 30.5 cm.)
Oil on paper
18.3 x 13.4 in. (46.5 x 34 cm.)
134
135
Sheth Laldas Maganlal J. P.
Gujarati Philanthropist from Mumbai
by Manilal M. Janee
dated: 1919
Oil on canvas
55.5 x 34.4 in. (141 x 87.5 cm.)
The portrait culture in India was so popular that many artists
sprang up in different parts of the country. It was a means to earn
money, fame as well as recognition. But, history is selective and
documents only artists which are great or had gained fame. There
was lack of an archival system and mediocre artists or regional
artists who did not have the right patronage got faded away. One
such artist is Manilal Janee who hailed from the Saurashtra part
of Gujarat. Though not known, he made a lot of portraits for the
Rajwadas of Saurashtra and probably earned more than his famous
counterparts. He must have had an establishment in Mumbai where
he made this portrait.
Laldas Maganlal, was a Gujarati businessman, who migrated to
Mumbai in search of work, did a job for two years and then later
established his own business. This made him acquire wealth and
a status in his community. He was also conferred the title of J. P.
(Justice of the Peace) by the Britishers. These titles were given
to a man of repute in the community who assured peace and also
as a justification of excluding Indians from positions of trust and
responsibility in the Raj. This also guaranteed staunch loyalism to
the British by the Indians on whom the title was conferred.
136
Portrait of a Railway Station Master
Portrait of a Maharashtrian Lady
by Manilal M. Jani
dated: 1922
by M. Naidu
circa 1900
Oil on canvas
20 x 16.2 in. (51 x 41 cm.)
Oil on canvas
15 x 12 in. (38 x 30.5 cm.)
138
139
Tapidas Vrajdas (1823-1886)
Sheth Premchand Raichand (1831-1906)
by Manu K., Surat
circa 1900
by M. Miyani
dated: 1904
Oil on canvas
39.2 x 27.2 in. (99.5 x 69 cm.)
Oil on canvas
32 x 21.7 in. (81.3 x 55 cm.)
140
141
Shrimant Tataya Saheb Holkar I
Maharaja of Indore
attributed to Dattatray D. Deolalikar (1893-1978)
circa 1908
Oil on canvas
36.2 x 26 in. (92 x 66 cm.)
Dattaray Damodar Deolalikar, was born in the Malwa region and
was instrumental in beginning art training in Indore and Gwalior.
He is also attributed to teaching thousands of students and some
of the known names in the art fraternity like M. F. Husain, N. S.
Bendre, Manohar Joshi, Vishnu Chinchalkar, etc. He studied at
the Holkar College in Indore and then learnt art from the Sir J.
J. School of Art - Bombay. He left Mumbai and settled in Indore
and did mythological paintings, landscapes and portraits. He also
established the Indore School of Art and promoted it widely
for almost 23 years. As a teacher he never forced or pressurized
his students and allowed them the freedom to paint all kinds
of paintings. Deolalikar was a man of principles and had a bias
towards the traditional Indian way of paintings.
The Holkar dynasty ruled the central part of India, initially as
Maratha Rajas and the later as Maharajas of Indore till 1818. Later
they ruled as one of the many princely states under the British rule.
Since Deolalikar was based out of Indore he might have painted
a lot of portraits of the Royal Family, especially the rulers. This
portrait might have been one of the many that he made. A book
in the hand of Maharaja indicates that he might be educated and
would have also patronised Deolalikar’s Art Institute.
142
Lady with mirror
For Kaushlyadevi, Queen of Nadia State
by Hemendranath Majumdar (1894-1948)
circa 1940
Oil on canvas
43.7 x 31.9 in. (111 x 81 cm.)
Hemendranath had an inclination towards pictorial art since
childhood and was a student at the Jubilee Art School - Calcutta.
Joining the school was his way of defying authority and the
necessity to follow one’s instincts rather than sticking to a specific
movement or group. He took matters in his control and was one
of the few artists of early twentieth century who enjoyed both
monetary success and critical appreciation. In 1929, he founded the
Indian Academy of Art at his residence in Kolkata and also started
printing a tri-monthly art journal. Famous artists like Bhabani
Charan Laha, Jogesh Chandra Seal, Jamini Roy and Atul Bose were
actively involved in the Academy’s activities. His last work was
to paint a mural to decorate the All India exhibition in 1947. He
painted its panels with several scenes of the life in Bengal that he
had experienced. This drained much of the artist’s health and he
passed away after a year.
He became known in the elite circles due to his portraits of nubile,
athletic young women in natural surroundings, almost like a pinup poster. His works evoked a certain sense of sexuality, eroticism
and mysterious aura, typical through the medium of a female
protagonist. He probably used his wife as a model for the portraits
and thus a similarity can be observed in the faces of all his female
paintings.
144
Mr. Edalji Dorabji Talati , B.A., J.P. (1849-1929)
by Eruchshaw Pestonji
dated: 1920
Oil on board
7.9 x 5.5 in. (20 x 14 cm.)
Eruchshaw Pestonji was the son of the famous Parsi realist Pestonji
Bomanji. Just like his father, he joined the art fraternity and painted
portraits for many prominent members of the Parsi community. It
seems that portrait painting was practiced more like a business that
a father passes on to his son as a heritage.
The portrait is of Mr. Talati - a popular and respected figure in
Mumbai during those days. From a very humble beginning he rose
to be the Principal of the Elphinstone High School - Bombay, in
the Presidency then, and was for some time also the Principal of
the Government High School at Surat, Ahmedabad and Karachi.
He was not a teacher by profession but by choice and teaching was
ingrained in his blood. He was like a father figure to his pupils and
by dint of sheer hard work coupled with honesty of purpose and
clarity of intelligence he was able to rise to important positions.
He was the one who first opened a Public School for Parsis based
on the blueprint of the Public Schools of England, that he visited.
He also made manual labour subjects like carpentry, gardening,
etc., compulsory. The government as well as the common people,
appreciated his efforts and showered him with many honours.
146
Parsi Lady wearing a khadi saree
Parsi Gentleman (Sir Phirozsha Mehta ?)
by Eruchshaw Pestonji
dated: 1919
by Eruchshaw Pestonji
dated: 1919
Oil on canvas
30.1 x 24 in. (76.5 x 61 cm.)
Oil on canvas
30.1 x 24 in. (76.5 x 61 cm.)
148
149
Portrait of father, M. F. Pithawala (1872-1937)
by Sorab M. Pithavalla
dated: 1935
Oil on canvas
30.1 x 24.2 in. (76.5 x 61.5 cm.)
Many artist children also took up portrait painting and earned a
name for themselves in the art community. One such was Sorab
Pithavalla, the second son of M. F. Pithawalla. He studied for almost
ten years the art of portrait painting from his father and also won
several awards and prizes at art exhibitions. He had the skill and
a unique proficiency in translating the exact living likeness on the
canvas. Both father and son had a command in genre depictions—
the portrait, indoors, barn life, still-life—without ignoring the
social. Their works have the props of a newly emergent bourgeois
life that was gaining momentum in India.
Sorab did portraits of both his father and mother. This portrait of
his father is on canvas whereas his mother’s portrait is in the form
of a painted photograph.
150
Sheth Raoji Naranji
Kutchi Philanthropist from Mumbai
by Unknown artist
The Enlargephoto & Co., Fort, Mumbai
circa 1930
Oil on canvas
30.3 x 24 in. (77 x 61 cm.)
Painted photographs were becoming the norm of the day during
the pre-independence era. A merging of the art of portrait
painting and the photographic tradition took place so seamlessly
that it marks a crucial chapter in the history of Indian Art. Artists
initially used photographic images as a reference to make portraits.
With advancement in photography, commercial studios opened up
all across the country offering instant, real and fast portraits. They
also started services to retouch portraits or add colour to black and
white or sepia images. Local artists were looking for work due to
loss of patronage and decline of princely states.
This portrait was painted by an artist and carries the seal of
the studio rather than the painters sign. Such was the time that
studios hired local artists to paint on photographs and added the
touch of an oil portrait on it. The tradition of hand-colouring
disappeared in the later years due to the invention of colour and
digital photography. No detail on Raoji Naranji could be gathered,
however he might have been a wealthy merchant living in Mumbai.
152
A devotee businessman of the Swaminarayan sect
Bapu Sakharam Vautare
by Arjan Nathubhai, Rajkot
dated: 1921
by Unknown artist
circa 1920
Oil on canvas
30 x 25.2 in. (76 x 64 cm.)
Opaque watercolour on paper pasted on cloth
34.3 x 24.8 in. (87 x 63 cm.)
154
155
Chhaganlal Thakordas Modi (1857-1947)
by B. A. Inamdar, Bombay
dated: 1925
Oil on canvas
59 x 36.2 in. (150 x 92 cm.)
During the late nineteenth century, philanthropy began to emerge
as a particularly important means of establishing an identity as a
person of authority among the Britishers and the general public.
Influential local sheths started donating to public causes like
education, health care, infrastructure services etc. giving rise to the
need of portraits.
This portrait is of the educationalist, Chhaganlal Thakordas Modi,
an illustrious and visionary from Surat. Modi’s father started the
first Hot Metal Type Foundry (Gujarati Type) at Mumbai. This
enabled Modi to envision the need for bringing and indigenizing
printing and for a proper research into Indian languages and
scripts. His research inspired his son to study Indian languages
and he also found that every letter in the Devnagari alphabet was
assigned to a Swaroop of Maha Saraswati.
He then compiled these to form the modern
day Devnagari Type Forms.
Chhaganlal Thakordas Modi got his picture
clicked at one of the local champaneria photo
stores in Surat and sent it to the artist in
Mumbai to paint.
Gelatine Silver print
156
A business tycoon from Mumbai
by K. P. Dabholkar
dated: 1956
Oil on canvas
78.3 x 42.1 in. (199 x 107 cm.)
During the later part of the century we could see a transformation
in the depiction of the Indian industrialist or noble men. The
portraits started to look more European in its stylization and
description in terms of attire and background. This could clearly
also indicate the influence of education and the changing paradigms
of the image of a gentleman.
This portrait by K. P. Dabholkar, shows an Indian person in a
western attire, with a scroll in hand, book cabinet in the background
and a victorian style flower arrangement by the side. The framing
of the portrait is also done in the form of self-indulgent decorative
style known as “art-deco” that was prevalent during those times.
This style of framing is said to have been synonymous with
depiction of luxury, glamour, exuberance and faith in social and
technological progress.
158
Previous Exhibitions
THE INDIAN PORTRAIT
THE INDIAN PORTRAIT - III
A catalogue showcasing the artistic journey
of portraits from miniature to modern art.
It starts with the miniature paintings done
by different schools like Pahadi, Rajasthani,
Central Province, Deccan, Company period,
Bengal, Colonial Influence and goes all the
way up to modern art. The catalogue has 37
portraits which were exhibited in October
2010.
The third catalogue in the series of Indian
Portraits focusing on printed portraits. There
are over 150 portraits, from earliest being
printed in 1580 all the way up to 1948. The
printed portraits in different graphic media
include woodcut, copper engraving, steel
engraving, wood engraving, lithograph &
chromolithograph. They were exhibited at
Surat in March 2014 and at Ahmedabad in
August 2014.
an artistic journey from miniature to modern
THE INDIAN PORTRAIT - II
Sacred Journey of Tilkayat
Govardhanlalji (1862 - 1934), Nathdwara
This catalogue focuses on the illustrious Tilkayat
Govardhanlalji who is considered the most
important in Nathdwara’s history. Containing
55 paintings arranged chronologically. The
paintings are done by various artists in different
media and subject, the common element being
Tilkayat Govardhanlalji. They were exhibited
in December 2013.
160
A Historical Journey of Graphic Prints up to Independence
THE INDIAN PORTRAIT - IV
Muraqqa - an Anthological Journey of the Mughal Empire
The Mughal documentation is known as
the best recorded history of the world. The
catalogue is an attempt to showcase the lineage
of the Mughal emperors who ruled in India and
their heritage, in terms of their lives, pursuits,
art, conquests, administration alongwith a
peep into their shrewd politics. All works are
part of a Mughal Muraqqa compiled by Hakim
Ahsanallah Khan, who was the chief adviser of
the last Mughal Emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar,
in the year 1270 A. H. (1854 A. D.). They were
exhibited in October 2014.
161
References
Bhandari, C. R., Bharat ke Vyapari, Commercial Book Publishing House,
Indore, 1929.
Khosla, K. R., H.I.M. King George V and Princes of India and Indian Empire,
Lahore, 1937.
Darukhanawala H. D., Parsi Luster on Indian Soil Volume - I & II, Bombay,
1963.
Desai, I. I., Surat Sona ni Murat, Surat, 1958.
Pawar, S. E., Mahan Bhartiya Chitrakar, Mumbai, 2012.
Portrait of a Community, Chemould Publications and Arts, Mumbai, 2002.
Mitter, P., Art and Nationalism in Colonial India (1850-1922), Cambridge
University Press, 1994.
© Anil Relia
Published by Archer, 2014
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