Important Notice

At the turn of the 20th century, when a colonial aesthetic based in realism dominated the Indian art scene, the nationalist sentiment sweeping through India also spilled into the art scene. A group of artists, led by Abanindranath Tagore, rejected the prevailing academic style by turning to indigenous and oriental art for inspiration. Their movement took shape in Shantiniketan in West Bengal and was dubbed the Bengal School of Art, which reached... At the turn of the 20th century, when a colonial aesthetic based in realism dominated the Indian art scene, the nationalist sentiment sweeping through India also spilled into the art scene. A group of artists, led by Abanindranath Tagore, rejected the prevailing academic style by turning to indigenous and oriental art for inspiration. Their movement took shape in Shantiniketan in West Bengal and was dubbed the Bengal School of Art, which reached its apex in the 1920s.

The Bengal School artists rejected everything they associated with the West. Oil painting was replaced by watercolour, tempera and ink. They educated themselves in the techniques and forms of Mughal and Rajput painting, as well as the cave paintings of Bagh and Ajanta. India, and its reality and mythology remained central subjects. While seeking new forms of expression, Abanindranath Tagore came into contact with the Japanese art critic and intellectual Okakura Kakuzo and discovered the Japanese wash technique which he passed on to his art students.

Among those who incorporated the fusion of Oriental and indigenous techniques was Nandalal Bose (lots 40, 41), who successfully imbibed Japanese calligraphic techniques which he transformed into a unique visual language. A different wave of artists including Sailoz Mukherjea, Gaganendranath Tagore, Jamini Roy and Ramgopal Vijaivargiya introduced other influences. Mukherjea's work (lot 38) was characterised by a confluence of Bengal School and European techniques. Gaganendranath Tagore (lot 42) carved a new path by introducing Cubism into his work, bridging Western and Eastern approaches. Roy (43, 44) initially worked in the style of the Bengal School. He distanced himself from it to adopt the simplicity and solid colours of the Kalighat pat. Vijaivargiya (lot 39) found his inspiration from the Bengal School of painting as well as mythology, though he remained wholly unattached to any particular school of Indian art.

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