By Gaurav Poddar (St. Stephen's College)
Paintings have always been pleasing to my eyes. I believe, the artist paints and leaves the viewer to travel through the painting to explore and appreciate the richness that lies therein.
If today, we travel to a country and find great monuments, palaces, etc. we click them in order to have a copy of it with us. Well, when Britishers came to India there were no cameras. So, when they were fascinated by the rich heritage and flora and fauna that India possessed, they hired Indian artists to paint it for them so that they can preserve it. From 1850 to 1875, Britishers developed a number of art schools for training the Indian artists. Four schools in Calcutta, Bombay, Madras and Lahore (Mayo School of Arts) were opened and Indians were trained to become portraitists, lithographers, illustrators, ornament designers, etc.
In British India, there were various styles of paintings that arose in different cities. These styles were heavily influenced by traditions. The paintings had a 'royal touch' and numerous prized paintings were accumulated. It was to please the British upper society. There were various themes of which war was the most common.
Paintings have always been pleasing to my eyes. I believe, the artist paints and leaves the viewer to travel through the painting to explore and appreciate the richness that lies therein.
If today, we travel to a country and find great monuments, palaces, etc. we click them in order to have a copy of it with us. Well, when Britishers came to India there were no cameras. So, when they were fascinated by the rich heritage and flora and fauna that India possessed, they hired Indian artists to paint it for them so that they can preserve it. From 1850 to 1875, Britishers developed a number of art schools for training the Indian artists. Four schools in Calcutta, Bombay, Madras and Lahore (Mayo School of Arts) were opened and Indians were trained to become portraitists, lithographers, illustrators, ornament designers, etc.
In British India, there were various styles of paintings that arose in different cities. These styles were heavily influenced by traditions. The paintings had a 'royal touch' and numerous prized paintings were accumulated. It was to please the British upper society. There were various themes of which war was the most common.
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| The Relief of Lucknow - Jessie's dream - By Frederick Goodall 1858 |
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| By Sitaram - A view of mosque and gateway in Upper Bengal (Water colour on paper) |
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| Bengal Fish - by Calcutta Scool (Pencil, Water colour and gliding on paper) |
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| Eight men in Indian and Burmese Costume (Opaque water colour, ink and gold on paper) |
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