Important Notice

The Early Bengal School of painting emerged as a result of the consistent changes taking place in Bengal due to the presence of the Portuguese, Dutch, French and the British over a period of nearly four centuries. Each group left behind “an imprint not only on the history, politics and economics that have shaped this fertile east Indian riverine state, but also on the Bengali’s cultural taste and appetite. Art, architecture, fashion, cuisine and... The Early Bengal School of painting emerged as a result of the consistent changes taking place in Bengal due to the presence of the Portuguese, Dutch, French and the British over a period of nearly four centuries. Each group left behind “an imprint not only on the history, politics and economics that have shaped this fertile east Indian riverine state, but also on the Bengali’s cultural taste and appetite. Art, architecture, fashion, cuisine and much else in Bengal is deeply subject to her colonial moorings and reflects the hybrid nature of her inheritance.” (Paula Sengupta, “White, Black and Grey: The Colonial Interface,” Kishore Singh ed., The Art of Bengal, New Delhi: Delhi Art Gallery, 2012, p. 10)

This led to “a steady influx of art objects, paintings and prints from Europe that the traditional Bengali artisan now had before him as role models. Putting their inherent skills to new use, these artisans developed a technique and a style that is unique in the history of painting and printmaking.” (Singh ed., p. 11)

While the Abanindranath Tagore and Nandalal Bose-led Bengal School of painting is recognised as having formally begun around 1905, the Early Bengal School is believed to have flourished in the state around the late 19th century. The artists of this school, who remain largely anonymous till date, combined the artistic styles of the East and the West to forge a direction that was vastly different from any other artistic movement prevalent during this time. Though they were trained in oil painting and the “values of Western academism and the lofty ideals of ‘high’ art” by the British colonisers in the hope of creating a group of “native drawing masters” for their own needs, these artists chose to paint mythological and religious scenes instead. (Singh ed., p. 11)

They realised that “there was a thriving market for paintings in oil, of mythological subjects, to which the training of art-school began to add newer dimensions. From single portraits of goddess Kali or other goddesses, there appeared elaborate scenes of Mahabharata and other epics and ever bolder attempts of newer interpretation of traditional subjects like ‘Raga-mala’. In all these attempts an unmistakable amount of miniature painters’ skill, both in form and rendering of details in dress and ornament, is noticeable but in a magnified version of canvas.” (Singh ed., p. 79)

The Early Bengal School artists, as a result, showed tremendous skill in their use of oil paint, as observed in lots 11 and 12. They utilised elements from Company School paintings, Kalighat patuas, court paintings and Western academic realist works to create a style that was uniquely their own. Here, greater emphasis was placed on local figures and narratives, making it a truly indigenous school of art.

This is evident in lots 11 and 12, with both works showcasing Hindu subjects and stories. Lot 11 depicts characters from Hindu mythology, viz., a lady, who is probably Yashoda, on a settee holding two children, who are believed to be Krishna (based on the unique blue colour used to paint him) and Balarama. Lot 12 depicts a large group of women with their children gathered along the banks of a river, observing a lady performing a ritual while standing in the middle of the river. The richly detailed garments and jewellery of the women and children in both lots are reminiscent of the style of European paintings while the subject matter remains deeply Indian.

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