Important Notice

This rare sketchbook of preparatory drawings and studies offers glimpses into Gaganendranath Tagore's artistic process. Drawings include characters from Bhodhor Bahadur, a series of fairy tales for children written by Tagore in the late 1920s - the only literary work left behind by the artist. Tagore, renowned for his watercolour paintings of Bengal and the Himalayas, is believed to have produced 500 cartoons, published in three volumes:... This rare sketchbook of preparatory drawings and studies offers glimpses into Gaganendranath Tagore's artistic process. Drawings include characters from Bhodhor Bahadur, a series of fairy tales for children written by Tagore in the late 1920s - the only literary work left behind by the artist. Tagore, renowned for his watercolour paintings of Bengal and the Himalayas, is believed to have produced 500 cartoons, published in three volumes: Birup Bajra (Strange Thunderbolts) and Adbhut Lok (Realm of the Absurd) published in 1917, and Nava Hullod (Reform Screams) published in 1921. Art critic R Siva Kumar lauds them as "celebrated examples of their kind." Writer, and founder and former editor of Marg, Mulk Raj Anand, observed that Tagore "sought to absorb world influences into the service of his own peculiar private visions of forms, and as a commentator through his cartoons on current affairs, he displays a depth of understanding about the mental and mortal crises in which India has been involved and an extraordinary technical virtuosity as a craftsman." (Pulinbihari Sen ed., Gaganendranath Tagore, Kolkata: The Indian Society of Oriental Art, 1972, p. 55)

Some line drawings are studies for finished caricatures which are now in the collection of the Rabindra Bhavana at the Visva-Bharati in Santiniketan, the Rabindra Bharati Society in Kolkata, and the National Gallery of Modern Art in New Delhi. Among his most important and significant works, they have been published in Samik Bandyopadhyay ed., Paintings of Gaganendranath Tagore, Kolkata: Pratikshan, 2015, pp. 233, 239, 240; and Pulinbihari Sen ed., Gaganendranath Tagore, Kolkata: The Indian Society of Oriental Art, 1972, p. 55.

A self-taught artist, Tagore ventured into caricature with his sketches of jurors made during his court summons in 1906 and 1907. In his 'Vichitra' club drawings, made between 1916 - 1918, he showed great wit and humour in drawing out the essence of his characters. His illustrations for Bhodor Bahadur demonstrate his versatility as a story-teller and draughtsman. Tagore passed away on 14 February 1938, leaving behind a legacy of work that has remained unique and influential. The largest collection of paintings by Gaganendranath Tagore are now housed at the Rabindra-Bharati Society in Jorasanko, Kolkata.

Read More
Artist Profile
Other works of this artist in: this auction  |  entire site