Important Notice

A member of the influential Tagore family, Gaganendranath Tagore was a self-taught artist and caricaturist who significantly contributed to the establishment of the Indian Society of Oriental Art in Calcutta. Much like his cousin Abanindranath Tagore, he was deeply involved in the formation and continuation of the Bengal School of Art, adopting the school’s pan-Asian artistic disciplines - such as Japanese brushwork and east Asian wash... A member of the influential Tagore family, Gaganendranath Tagore was a self-taught artist and caricaturist who significantly contributed to the establishment of the Indian Society of Oriental Art in Calcutta. Much like his cousin Abanindranath Tagore, he was deeply involved in the formation and continuation of the Bengal School of Art, adopting the school’s pan-Asian artistic disciplines - such as Japanese brushwork and east Asian wash techniques - in the majority of his works, including the present lot.

Painted in 1920, the present lot belongs to Gaganendranath’s extensive body of ethereal landscapes that were inspired by his homeland, Bengal. He uses a soft, almost-monochromatic palette and masterfully employs Bengal School’s characteristic wash technique to capture the depth, richness and serenity of this misty Darjeeling scenery. “He saw the world introspectively and with his own eyes, and made pictures on original lines. Bengal in its different moods has been revealed in his work.’’ (Dinesh Chandra Sen, “Gaganendranath Tagore as I Knew Him,” Journal of the Indian Society of Oriental Art, Vol. 6, Calcutta: Indian Society of Oriental Art, 1938, p. 10)

Speaking of his nephew’s painting, Gaganendranath’s uncle and Bengali literary and artist Rabindranath Tagore remarks, “What profoundly attracted me was the uniqueness of his creation, a lively curiosity in his constant experiments, and some mysterious depth in their imaginative value. Closely surrounded by the atmosphere of a new art movement, … he sought out his own untrodden path of adventure, attempted marvellous experiments in colouring and made fantastic trials in the magic of light and shade.” (Rabindranath Tagore, Journal of the Indian Society of Oriental Art, Vol. 6, pp. 1-2)

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