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Bengal School of Art PT 3

The document summarizes the origins and development of the Bengal School of Painting in India from the late 19th century to mid-20th century. It emerged in response to decline in traditional Indian painting under British rule. Led by Abanindranath Tagore, the school sought to revive Indian art traditions and promote national identity. Key aspects included historical, religious, literary and social themes painted in an aesthetic style influenced by Ajanta frescoes. The school helped spark a renaissance in Indian art and spread across the country through various regional centers.

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100% found this document useful (1 vote)
213 views16 pages

Bengal School of Art PT 3

The document summarizes the origins and development of the Bengal School of Painting in India from the late 19th century to mid-20th century. It emerged in response to decline in traditional Indian painting under British rule. Led by Abanindranath Tagore, the school sought to revive Indian art traditions and promote national identity. Key aspects included historical, religious, literary and social themes painted in an aesthetic style influenced by Ajanta frescoes. The school helped spark a renaissance in Indian art and spread across the country through various regional centers.

Uploaded by

likad37573
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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THE BENGAL SCHOOL OF PAIN'l'ING

C 7
AND THE MODERN TRENDS IN INDIAN ART
(Front the beginning to nlid of the 20 th Century)
'"•~,i,'.~,. (A)
-
' rnt.
--•·'-----~-~ ------~~
HCN \Jf\L O\.,n vva.. '-'• -
--------~ ---------- -----~~-- ---···
----
~ ,--.u_~- - - ~ G
- ·- ~--· __________ _ Jii,._

The Bengal School of Art emerged in 1950s. specif ical]y in Kolka ta and
Santinik;tan. as a mnvcmcnl involving exp loring new artistic method s, or
exprimenting with new techniques in order to produ ce better art estahli ~hed
it~clf aionl! the lines of the Indian freedom struggle. The rise of the nati onali
sentiment... with the Swade shi movem ent (self-s ufficie ncy in pror) uctic,
non-cooperation with foreigners, self-go vernan ce, unity of all Indian s a,
foreigncr~. among many others influe nced the art and artists as we! I

ORIG IN AND DEVE LOPM ENT OF THE BENG AL SCHO


PAINTING

Towar ds the close of the ninete enth centur y, Indian paintin...,


extens ion of the Indian miniat ure paintin g, fell on declin e, and ~· ~
into weak and unfelt imitat ion largely due to histori cal reason s, bo ~n po.:~
and sociol ogical . This create d a void which was not filled unti' th'- t" ,..
years of the twenti eth centur y, and even then not truly.

There was only some minor artistic expres sion in the interv ening period
by way of the 'Bazaa r' and 'Comp any' styles of painti ng, apart from the
more substantial folk forms which were alive in many parts of the country.
They foJlow ed the newly develo ped weste rn conce pt of natura lisrn. the
foremo st suppo rter of which was Raja Ravi Varma . An atten1pt to in1part
these culturaJ morals was made by Abanindranath Tagore (nephe\\ of
Rabind ranath Tagore ) under whose inspired leadership can1c into b\?ing ~l
new &chooJ of paintin g which was distinctly nostalgic and nnnan tic to start
with, and held its wc1y fCJr over three decad es.
RENAISSANCE

Also called the Reviv alist Schoo l and rightly so, Benga l Schoo l of Painti ng
broug ht a Renai ssance in Indian art. The idea behind this schoo l was a
vision of an indepe ndent India that would get its streng th from the rich
cultL ii an d historical herit age that it h 0 ld
of ti,• r1 ovement along with h.1s worthy s. l\hanind ranath T
a Na nal stylc of Art in p arnttng
. . . this
m . h consci ous1y tried
pupils agorc.
t the p·\Oneer
• sc oo\ . o rc-gcp,crate

. h the coming of the B t tt1sh .. Finp,· r •


· d R aJput
.1n . School of P·ell. ll t.,.ltl g t oc W'
Ill I 1·
IVf u ln< ,a there w·cl S a c\ cc\" .
aftc' ng efforts, B riti s he rs cou I<I not dcvclot> ''" sthl he I 'Jt h <.,c n111ry inc
Ev in
in 111 •· B y the end of the 19th c\l1 , ( I \ IlC bcgi . c western ·,rt ' () I pamti
. . en
J

art c ne to an • end

with R'lJ·a '. c
R·,'Y .I Vcrma. nnin B t g thof the 20th
. century thi<;
ng
new ~rv1c of Paintmg in lndia goes. t o b ot h Raia
. Rav,
u c ncd,t <,f bring·mg a
Vi
E.B. Havell, an English art hi storian , encouraged t rd, d'crma
• <ind E.B. Have\\ .
worked as the Principal of Madr as S c h ool of Art Hiona\ f Indian art and
1
Thereafter
. he was transferred to C a 1cutta where herorn, .884 to 1g9r:,_
Abanmdranath Tagore
. . ' the then lead'ing artist . of India. wa~ mtr<>-1.u·
Within ~
ed to
new school
. . .of. painting
. was established wit • h the efforts of both Ila J r ~a
of In d.1a .s distinctive spiritual style wer e done here as oppn ,t r• · ,-
matenahsm. It was based fully on Ind·ian tract·ition . r1 \ .1-lC1..
as the Bengal School of Art.

In 1907 Shri E.B. Havell, Abanindranath Tagor -


Gagane~dra Nath Tagore founded the "Indian Soc ~t~
whose aim was to encourage traditional Indian art ol p1 ir,
of progressive artists. There were thirty Britishers and fi
organisation and the director was Lord Kitchner. j_n l 908 an c~ .
paintings was organised in which the paintings of Shri .\banidranath Taoore
Nand Lal Bose, K. Venkatappa, Ganganendra Nath Tagore and Shail;ncm:
Nath De, were exhibited. Percy Brown, John Woodroff, N.C. Mehta and
O.C. Ganguli, encouraged these artists with their appreciation.

In the same time Lady Herringham came to India. She got the. painting,
of Ajanta copied by N and Lal Bose, Asit Kumar Haldar and K. \ enk.atappa.
She also got the same published in the "India Society London". The paintings
of Bagh caves were also copied. Jshwari Prasad of Patna School painted
religious themes at Calcutta. Anan<la C'oomaraswamy arranged several
exhibitions of Indian Paintings in foreign countries which resulted in obtaining
respect and fame for the Indian Painting in other countries too. This
renaissance of Indian Art spread in every corner of the country after starting
from Bengal. Special art centres were started at Bombay, Madras, Delhi,
'-il' c. • 1 w -. if not wholly successn:rr nnK
d j ntent1 oned,
SCI

\\ ith 1 ~ S( ·110()L
Sl n n{, . ·tori c a1 events were painted in
L " • S ) n1any 111 s . ' . d b
,,,. irstoricai r'ainungr, · · t. , , d ' Hudha and S u.1ata pa1nte y
✓1• JI.L Sl)'lc. .,.r,s • l ' R·1k sl11ta ' kb ' d 'K 1'
. , , , ,.,. 1•)' r·cl llH) ll ·S on es.
(lll r
tl 1IS , 1) 3 L ' A ar an una
T ll ff(' ar c '"' · ·
Abanidranat 11 a b t . " 11 ~. 'trc al so famou s pa1nt1ngs.
. :, , Asif Kun1a1 ha oct <
pamted l) · ., 'Shiv Parvati ', ' Krishna and (h \'
. f gs . ·Mahakalt ,
2. Religious Pain in . . . . ainted under this theme .
d n1anv other events we1e p
a1~ . . . _T ,h . Themes of Indian literature were libera l , .. d
~ L1terarl emes · . · ·
. . ,·. JD . th JS . h00 I· Megh Doot of Ram Gopal V1swarg1ya is ver.,
. SC
under this theme.
4. Social Life: There is an abundance of the social and daily life ✓
in this school. 'Hard-ware merchant' 'Beggar', 'The L ast I,,_~ .,
etc.. are worth mentioning.

5. Birds and Animals : Birds and Animals have also been p ainted.
But the animals painted are really beautiful and ,expressiv e . In ih e
'Last Journey' the end of a camel has been depicted. It is a \\ onderful
emotional sight. The expressions on the face Of the camel are very
touching.
6
• Landscape Painting : Landscape paintings have been beautifullv
done in tltis school. ·
I
M n RISJ 1( S OJ< UJ~NGAL SCHOOL
1. Effect of Ajanta . Th , . . .
Painting B 01
· . e soul !\Janta is clearly visible in the Bengal
· enga1 painters h·tvc t .· I 10 ·
rhyth1n and grace of A', ·. . _nee _ introdu~e the linear delicacy,
t
111
Jant,i lhc1r pamtings to the best of their ability.
HO )=
Full of Indian Traditions : This sc hool is full of Indian traditional
l
style of painti ng. w hich was actua ll y the main aim of Bengal Schoo
painters.
l.
2. Simple and Clear Paintings : Paintings are simp li fied and norma
It takes no time to understand the paintings.
ful.
3. Soft and Rhythmic Figures : The fi gures arc delicate and grace
There is no hardn ess in th em any where. The rhythm of th e fi gures
gives an extrao rdina ry pleas ure to the eyes.

4. Attractive Colour Scheme : The colou r schem e of the paintin gs


used
is very attractive. Bright and gaudy colou rs have not at all hccn
n.:
any where. Wash techn ique has been used in order to bring harmo
in the painti ng.

5. Impact of Mughal and Rajasthani School : The impact of r 1


and Rajas thani schoo l is also there in the paintings at some - ~

,
6. Light and Shade : Light and Shade has been very delic~ t:e.:.¥·•::.i ·- .•
which has added softne ss to the painti ngs and hardn ess is ;.1 1,;: - _• .

seen in them.
style .
Inspit e of the above qualit ies some drawb acks rema ined in this
ed
In the begin ning the paint ings were very attrac tive as they were paint
Tagore,
by the pioneers of the school. Abaindranath Tagore, Gaga nendr a Nath
an Ul\..il,
Asit Kuma r Halda r, K. Venketappa, Nand Lal Bose, Shard a Char
s could
Jamin i Roy were amon g the prom inent ones. But the later artist
a, Mugh al,
not paint with that stand ard. We find an inferi or copy of Ajant
colours
Rajasthani schools etc. Long arms, thin figures, half opene d eyes, dim
etc. made the paint ings unattr active afterw ards.
re
The rise of Beng al Scho ol : With the comin g of the Britis h Empi
ng towards
in India there was a declin e in Mugha) and Rajpu t Schoo l of painti
n Art and
the 19th Centu ry. Mr. E.B . Have ll encou raged tradit ional India
along with
an Indian arti st Abain drana th Tagore, the pione er of the move ment
of Art in
his worthy pupil consciou sly tried to re-ge nerat e a Natio nal style
painting in Beng al.

CONTRIBUTION OF INDIAN ARTISTS IN NATIONAL FREEDOM


STRUGGLE
l
Art and artistic creations have alway s been a reflec tion of the socia
the India ~
econo mic and intellectual envir onme nt of a society. The perio d of
~
1947
NATIONAL FLAG
, ... ,1E THE EVOL UTIO N OF INDIA N NATIONAL FLAG
ARTIST UNKN OWN

~1FDIU M COLOURED CLOTH

P1 'RIOD 1906-1921-1947 A.D.


COURTESY i\1INISTRY OF INFOR MATIO N AND BROA DCASTING,
GOVT. OF INDIA.

"It will be neces sa,y for us Indians Muslims, Ch ristians, .Tews. Parsis,
and all others to whom India is their home- to recop, i,.,,r a common
1

flag to live and to die for." - M<1hatn 1•p I 11


SUBJECT MATTER : The aim for makin g the Tndi,t , ' 1

was to have a separa te identit y of India as Nation al Free


was going on and efforts for making India free were in prr r ·
flags were made time to time but the final Indian Nation ~l ia6 -.i ~
on Augus t 15, 1947. It was discovered or recogn ised du1i . : .
struggle for freedom. In a way it reflects the politic al devdo r "-=hS ii .
,.
nation. The evolution of the Indian National Flag went through many tran~itio
to arrive at what it is today. Some of the histori cal milest ones involve the
follow ing:

MAIN STAGES DESC RIPT ION : FIRST (1906) : The first Indian
Nation al Flag was hoiste d on Augus t 7, 1906 in the Parsee Bagan Square
(Green Park) in Calcut ta now Kolkata. The flag was compo sed to three
horizo ntal strips of green, yellow and red that sough t to unite the multit ude
s
of castes and races within the country. In the top strip, 8 white lotuse
l
repres enting the eight provin ces have been shown . In the yellow centra
strip, 'Vande Matar am' in Hindi is written in dark blue colour and in the
bottom strip, a half moon in white is shown at the left side and a white
sun of the right side.

MIDDLE (1921) : The next impor tant stage after a few minor ones
in betwe en can be consid ered to be of 1921. Durin g the sessio n of All
India Cong ress Comm ittee which met at Bezw ada in 1921 (now
Vijaya wada) , an Andhr a youth Pinga li Venka iah prepa red a flag and took
it to Gandh iji. It was made up of two colou rs-red and green, repres enting
the two major comm unitie s i.e., Hindu s and Musli ms. Gandh iji sugge sted
the additi on of a white strip to repres ent the remai ning comm unitie s of
ss
India and the spinni ng wheel to symbo lise self suffic iency and progre
of the Nation .
FI NA L (l 94 7) : 0 n Ju1~ .. ' 1Q47 . A ne w fla g of free Ind i a as a .
. .
. ..11 , .. ,. dl)pte\.l b) the Co ns titu · nat1
was hoisted w 111e w.l::- en t As sem bl y. The th on
. . L

d its mo d'f ' . ought


be hm 1 tCJ tio ns wa s to ma ke tt ac ce pta ble to all


pa rtie
commu111. t1c
.
s.
It \\ as .1 tso re so h ed tha t the
.. · . · . fla g sh ou ld n ot hav
s anct
. _ . .f. e
communa I traces. T he tri co lou r flag s s1g111 tca nc e rem a111-.. the any
. sa
Dharma Clrn kf<-a Of- em pe ror Ashoka wi th 24 sp ok es wa s ad c, rne.
led inst d
of the Charkha. Th us. the tri co lou
r lla g of the ~o ng r~ ss Pa1 •vc ea
became the tric olo ur flag of Ind ntually
ep en de nt Ind_1a. _It 1s noy, •
national pride wh ich rep res en ts ymbol of
ho pe s an d asp 1ra tio ns of 11.
f1cople.
Symbolic sig nif ica nc e of its for
m an d colours : Le t's them one
by on e:
Saffron is for co ura ge an d sac
rif ice . It is the co mm on an
significant color of the religions · 1igiously
of Hi nd u, Bu dd his t, Sik h an d_,
colour indicates rej ect ion of the .•i11 . Saffron
eg o of the pe op le be lon gin g to
religion an d unites then.1 to bec01 different
ne on e.
White is for truth, honesty, purity
an d pe ace of the na tio n. It also
cleanliness an d kn ow led ge . It lig represents
hte ns the pa th of tru th in ord er
the nation. to guide

Green is for faith an d chivalry. It


also rep res en ts the fertility, life,
an d pro spe rity of the nation. It happiness
ind ica tes the gre en fie lds all ov
er India.
Na vy blu e colour, of the As ho
k Ch ak ra in the ce ntr e of the
represents the co lor of the sky white strip
an d the oc ean s.
Dh ar ma Ch ak ra is the wh eel of
co sm ic law it sta nd s for co nst an
and dynamism. ' t change
24 spokes*
in the cen tre rep res en t the 24
day. pre cio us ho urs of the whole

Sar~epalli Ra dh ak ris hn an , wh o
lat er be ca me Ind ia' s fir st Vice
cla nfi ed the ado pte d fl President.
ag an d d esc nb• ed 1ts
. s1g
. mf
. 1ca
. nce f
as o 11 o ws ··
"~ ~a gw a or th e sa ffr on
co lou r de no tes ren un cia tio
dzs mt ere ste dn ess . Ou r lea de rs n _or
mu st be ind iff ere nt to ma ter ial
an d de dic ate the ms elv es to the gains
ir wo rk.
The white in the centre is light,
the pa th of tru th to gu ide ou r
conduct.
J./ww s our relat irm to (rhe) soil, our relat ion
10 the plan t
._, ct 11

t , c. 011 H'hich all othe r l(fe depe nds.


el vf the
l ··Asl wka Chak ra" in the cent re of the whit e is the iv!te
the controllirn?
law of dlwn na. Truth or sarya. dhar ma or virtue ough t to be
]d no more n:"1st
princ iple of those who \\ 0rk unde r this flag .. lndi~ "hou
1

1~m
chan ge.
...,
it must mov e and go fonv ard. The whee l repre q~nh tlic dyn am
of a peac eful chan ge.··
om commm1.tl
The symb oHsm of the trico lour has endl ess implicatio~1-. f
.. h, a~~ b1.·t''1
to secu lar and from hjsto rica] to mod em. Sinc e India tM,
land of diver se relig ions and faith s it beca me mand atory to
g1, t:'
ith.
and secu lar mean ing whic h ever yone coul d a,;;\ociate \\'

nces dawn from variou s


* (2-t spokes ha, c many other interp retatio ns that hme infere
belief s :
24 spoke s arc for 24 syl1ab1es of the gayat ri mantr a
wield ed the whole
It also repres ents 24 Dhan na Rishis of the Hindu religi on who
power of the Ga) ,ltri Mantr a
to nirvan a
They indica te the teach ings of the Lord Budd ha from birth
ge, Patien ce, Peace fulnes s,
They also indicate 24 vinue s of the Hindu dhann a: Love. Coura
ssnes s, Self-C ontro l, Se]f
Magn animi ty, Good ness. Faith fulne ss. Gentl eness . Selfle
fulnes s. Humi lity, Empa thy,
Sacrif ice. Truth fulnes s. Right eousn ess. Justice. Mercy . Grace
Wisdo m. The Fear of God
Symp athy. Spirit ual Know ledge . Mora l Value s. Spirim al
and Faith (Belie f or Hope) .

allow ed to
NOT E : Khadi or hand -spu n cloth is the only mate rial
be used for the flag and its size ratio is 3:2 in leng th
and
breadth.
~
JO UR NE Y' S END
RE
AB AN IN DR AN AI B TAGO
AR'Il ST
WATER CO LO UR AN D
TE MPERA (wash)
l\1EDIUM
1937 A.D .
PERIOD
.,HI
M OD ER N ART, NE W Df:J
coURTFSY NA TI ON AL GA LL ER Y OF

\,1ded ca m el
AT TE R : Th is pa in tin g sh ow s a tired and O\ ', 1

SUBJECT M ref
th e ed ge of de at h. In fa ct , th e ar tis t is sh ow in g a
on
ar t-w or k.
life th ro ug h this pi ec e of
Td
SC RI PT IO N : In th is pa in tin g artis t ha s us ed
DE h
llo w or an ge co lo ur gi vi ng the ef fe ct of su ns et wn
of ye
ed Ca m el ha s a ki nd of cl ot h tie d wi th ro pt
ad
In th e fo re gr ou nd , th e lo ca m el is m or e th an its
at th e w or k do ne by
on hi s ba ck , sh ow in g th ten de d to th e fo re grou nd
n of co lo ur s ha s be en ex
capacity. Th e co m bi na tio is ju st
t in bl ue s fo r th e sto ne s wh er e the lo ad ed ca m el
ad di ng da rk tin ys tic al
er e is an im pr es sio n of the desert, gi vi ng a very m
ab ou t to fall. Th re ac hes
ol e co m po sit io n. It is a sy m bo lic al pa in tin g th at
ef fe ct to th e wh ing
pi cto ria l ele m en ts of th e work. Th e crouching, ga sp
beyond the explicity to
ar id de se rt in th e tw ili gh t ho ur s ha s a re le va nc e
ca m el se t ag ai ns t an
life in general.
ve s an ef fe ct of po et ic de lib er ati on , wh er ein a
Th e th em e of pa in tin g gi d fall on a stony ground.
ur ne y is ab ou t to di e an
loaded camel after a lo ng jo an im al an d re fle ct s ke en
as te rly stu dy of th e
Th e dy in g ca m el is a m m el 's face is tre1nendous.
Th e ex pr es sio n of th e ca
observation of the artist.
SHIVA AND SATI
NA ~
NANO LAL BOSE
AR '-
1908 (Bengal School)
PERIOD

MEDiill1 WATER COLOUR (TEMPERA)


RN ART, NEW DELHI
coURTESY NATIONAL GALLERY OF MODE

t ma tte r of the paintm g depict~


Lord
SUBJECT MATTER : Th e sub jec , d the
rry ing go dd ess Sa ti iri ,,
Shiva is sh ow n sea ted an d ca
ma in ep iso de s of Sh i\ re
scene is rel ate d to on e of the
of this pa int ing tot a!1
Sati is dead. Th e sub jec t 1natter
log y by Mo de m In :
1•

This pa int ing is a na rra tiv e my tho


Lal Bose.
.
ION : Th is mo no ch rom ati c pa int ing see ms to be i1; ~~ 1r-
DESCRIPT iva tor
is sho wn aro un d the he ad of Sh
from Aj an ta pa int ing s. A ha lo de s of
en tin g him as Go d. Ex pre ssi on s are ve ry go od . Th e sha
rep res s
ite co lou r ha ve be en de pic ted on for eh ead s of bo th figure
lig ht in wh
dy of Sh iva . Th e pa int ing ha s be en ma de in bro wnish
and als o on bo
are very
ects of clouds in the for eg rou nd
mo no ch rom ati c effects. Th e eff
qu ite attractive.
im pre ssi ve . Th e ba ck gro un d is
respect.
sake of he r hu sba nd Sh iva 's self
Sati ha s sac rif ice d he r life for the words
he r Da ks ha wh o wa s ag ain st their ma rri ag e spoke abusive
Sati's fat r
in a gre at pa rty (ya jna ). So , Sa ti en de d he r life through he
for Sh iva ,
po we rs by bu rni ng he r bo dy through fire. So, in this pa int ing
int rin sic
ryi ng Sa ti in his arm s. He is in a sitting pose. It is one of
Sh iva is car
La l Bose.
the be st pa int ing s of Sh. Na nd
Ar t',
be ing ass oci ate d wi th the wo rks of 'In dia n So cie ty of Oriental
Af ter ht him a
s pa int ing at on e of the soc iet y's first art exhibitions bro ug
thi
prize of Rs. 500 in 1908.
\lE RADHIKA
.K- 1ST M .A.R. CHUGHTAl

SC li )()L MODERN

\H:!DTUM WATER COLOUR TEMPE RA (WASl I)

COURTESY NATIONAL GALLERY OF MODERN ART, NEW DELHl

SUBJECT 1\ilATTER : This painting is based on a typical Indian , .n


girl in standing pose going out of her roo111. She is feelin g ~ '
painting belongs to Hindu religion.

DESCRIP TION : It is a vertical painting of M. A.R. C l ug .


Pakistani Artist) having the size 52. 7 x 73 cm.
This is a painting of typical Indian young girl in standing pose g0; ng (J •
of her roon1. Her head is down. Her left foot is forwar'd and toe i~
shown nicely while the right foot is shown with three fingers with a
dominating little finger of the foot. Her left hand and right hand are holding
the lotus flowers, left hand is bent normally near her neck while right
hand is folded in a typical pose, and an ant is walking on a lotus flower
near her right hand. The ant is '-0.tb wings, -may be an insect.
In the backgroun d a lamp stand with_flan:ie is shown with a burning flame
and smoke is going upwards. Near the lamp some insects are shown
dead on the ground.
DRESS : The lady is wearing a blue coloured lehnga, a red blouse and
a yellow orange sari with both of them. Ornaments are shown with well
decorative lines.
Lines are thin and sharp with full of expression. The whole painting is
giving a very good impression due to rhythmic, expressive and fine lines.
Her hair are also painted with grey, black and brown colour. Backgroun d
is shown with centrally yellow colour and gradually outside orange and
brown at the bottom and top also. This painting is of wash technique
which was only done by the Bengal School artists at that time while this
is a technique of Japan and China. Mostly lines are drawn with thin
brushes after the completion of painting.
··•11 rvtE MEGHDOOT
rIST RAM GOPAL VUAIVARGIYA
1,0L BENGAL SCHOOl
1' 1, r,1lJM WATER COLOUR (Wash) TEMPERA ON PAPER
l<I OD 1961-66 A.O.
Sl'./F l 0.5" x 14"
COURTESY LALIT KALA AKADEML NEW DELHI

SUBJECT MATTER: This painting is based on a lyrical poem ' Mc~hc


wiitten by Kalidas. Meghaduta is a story of a Yaksha, who li ve~ in the h ·
mythical city of Alaka in the Himalayas. He was exiled hy hi
King Kubera for one year for neglecting his duties. The poem i~ .
eight months after the exile, when the Yaksha yearning for hi s ,
convinces a passing cloud to become his messenger (duta) and a "~'
message to his beloved wife awaiting his return.
DESCRIPTION : Ram Gopal Vijaivargiya, a prolific writer and poet 1 1 iu ~t.
to being an outstanding artist, has painted Meghdoot (cloud- messv •....,t 1
one of his favourite themes, in three separate series each one having up of
60 to 70 paintings. Literary classics were a constant source of inspiration
for him which resulted into the production of masterpieces based on
literature. His personified fictional characters had a life of their own, in
nature and waterfall in an idyllic setting. His characters had soft features,
gracefully curving bodies , softly smiling mouths, half-closed, doe-like eyes,
thin shapely arms and long, tapering fingers
Here the handsome Yaksha is sitting on rocks in a forest and writing his
feelings. His features are beautifully modeled with youthful softness. He is
writing on a leaf with right hand and holding a flower in his left hand. His
expressions are somber with tears in his eyes as he longs for his beloved
and his home while writing the message. He is wearing a yellow Dhoti and
a long stole hangs on his left shoulder. He is also wearing a necklace. His
hair are long curled upward at the ends.
In the background there is a thatched hut and thick forest trees in green
and yellow colours. The hut, trees and rocky terrain are painted in light
and dark brown colour. Two wave like clouds are swirling into the
composition from back and front towards the Yaksha. They are painted
with sky blue in the starlit dark sky. A few small birds are also flying amongst
the clouds. The nature seems to be participating in his yearning to reach
his beloved.
The colors are soft and light giving this painting a subtle glow. Lines are
sharp with tonal variations in brown colour. The story was as important
as the technique of the painting. Even in modernism he sticks to his preference
for people as subjects of literary works.

-==<J.!1>==-

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