Important Notice

Manchershaw Fakirjee Pithawalla was among the earliest generation of artists to emerge from the Sir J J School of Art in Bombay, and one of the few portraitists to gain recognition besides Pestonji Bomanji around the turn of the 20th century. The Parsi artist was one of India's most celebrated salon artists trained in the academic realism style of painting that was followed at that time.

Born in 1872 in the village of Pitha near... Manchershaw Fakirjee Pithawalla was among the earliest generation of artists to emerge from the Sir J J School of Art in Bombay, and one of the few portraitists to gain recognition besides Pestonji Bomanji around the turn of the 20th century. The Parsi artist was one of India's most celebrated salon artists trained in the academic realism style of painting that was followed at that time.

Born in 1872 in the village of Pitha near Surat, Pithawalla moved to Bombay after his father's death in 1888 and after an initial phase of exploring writing, he was discovered and trained by John Griffiths, then principal of J J School. He was a student there until 1896, and during this time won several awards, including the silver medal and a cash prize at the Bombay Art Society's Fine Arts exhibition in 1894. He would then go on to win the gold medal in 1908. This formative time was essential in mapping his artistic journey forward. Pithawalla was gaining recognition as an artist and had begun exhibiting widely in Simla, Darjeeling, Madras and Pune as well, and won several awards at these shows. In 1905, he was commissioned to produce an album celebrating Indian women to be presented to Queen Mary on her Indian visit.

In 1911, Pithawalla went to Europe to see its art for himself-a trip that ended with his arrival in London for the opening of his one-man show at Dore Gallery on 11 October. This exhibition also coincided with the British royal visit to India, during a time in which "India held the public's attention. It was the first exhibition by an Indian artist, as noted by The Graphic. While The Evening Standard welcomed it for 'that reason alone', it added that Mr Pithawalla's work had 'definite merits of his own'. His observation of character was unforced, his poses 'natural' and his handling of figures in interiors tactful... The President of the society of British watercolourists graciously suggest that in quickness of capturing a likeness the Indian had scarcely a rival in Britain." (Partha Mitter, Art and Nationalism in Colonial India, 1850-1922: Occidental Orientations, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994, pp. 84-85)

Pithawalla was to become a wellknown portrait artist, and the following collection of paintings from The Dr. K N Bahadurji Memorial Sanatorium For Parsis include several of his works. "At a deeper level, his portraiture enshrined the values of this elite, comprising merchant-princes, lawyers, landowners and their ladies. Through his rendering of detail, the sitters' expressions and gestures, the fall of light on their rich but discreet clothes, the gleam of wood panelling, the exquisite highlights on chinaware, Pithawalla memorialised the values of India's Victorian colonial establishment: worldly success and ethical striving, self-assurance and permanence." (Ranjit Hoskote, Manifestations II: Indian Art in the 20th Century, New Delhi: Delhi Art Gallery, 2004, p. 171)

The Dr. K N Bahadurji Memorial Sanatorium For Parsis-named after Dr. Kaikhushroo Nusserwanji Bahadurji-was inaugurated on 15 August 1902 to provide health services to the Parsi community. Situated in Deolali, Nasik, it was initially founded to treat tuberculosis patients who lived in crowded cities like Bombay, and eventually became a retirement home for the elderly Parsi community by 1998.

Spread over 12.5 acres of land, the Sanatorium has 42 Victorian-tyle cottages surrounded by lush nature and landscaped lawns. Besides a library and club house, it also offers medical care and a doctor's clinic for its residents. The rich heritage of the location-which includes the commissioned portraits made by Manchershaw Pithawalla, Sorab Pithawalla, Tehmuras Constable and Edric Wirth-contributes to the atmosphere of dignity and comfort provided to its senior residents.

The following lots are part of their portrait collection and are now offered on sale in an effort to maintain the upkeep of the Sanatorium's vast property and continue the good work undertaken by the management to provide a safe haven for the aging citizens of the Parsi community.

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