8.PIONEERS OF CONTEMPORARY INDIAN ART || NIOS- Secondray Course || PANTING-225 CLASS-X

Chapter-8

           PIONEERS OF CONTEMPORARY INDIAN ART              

Modern Indian Art is very much related to the history of the country and social conditions in which the artists developed their styles. We see the growth of different schools after the decline of British Raj. The British Period produced significant works under the Company School. The Indian artists followed the European techniques in their paintings. Artist like Raja Ravi Varma served as a bridge to revive Indian subjects but followed western style. Later the Bengal School established in Santiniketan served as a centre of artistic development. Artists of various backgrounds came together to give a new dimension to Indian art. They either followed western style or far eastern techniques but they somehow were able to project their own individual style. Abanindranath Tagore and his diciples contributed on a large scale. Nandlal Bose, Jamini Roy, D. P. Roy Chowdhury and others have left their mark in the history of Indian Art. Bengal School provided a starting point to the movement to the contemporary Indian Art.  The best and most individualistic painter was probably Amrita Shergil. Though she didn’t follow any Indian school, she was able to produce a good number of remarkable works within a short period of seven years. The technique, the choice of subjects and the desire to bring forward the true Indian life through their work were well received by the next generation.

आधुनिक भारतीय कला देश के इतिहास और सामाजिक परिस्थितियों से बहुत संबंधित है जिसमें कलाकारों ने अपनी शैली विकसित की। हम ब्रिटिश राज के पतन के बाद विभिन्न स्कूलों की वृद्धि को देखते हैं। ब्रिटिश काल ने कंपनी स्कूल के तहत महत्वपूर्ण कार्य किए। भारतीय कलाकारों ने अपने चित्रों में यूरोपीय तकनीकों का पालन किया। राजा रवि वर्मा जैसे कलाकारों ने भारतीय विषयों को पुनर्जीवित करने के लिए एक पुल के रूप में काम किया लेकिन पश्चिमी शैली का पालन किया। बाद में शांतिनिकेतन में स्थापित बंगाल स्कूल ने कलात्मक विकास के केंद्र के रूप में कार्य किया। विभिन्न पृष्ठभूमि के कलाकार भारतीय कला को एक नया आयाम देने के लिए एक साथ आए। उन्होंने या तो पश्चिमी शैली या दूर की पूर्वी तकनीकों का अनुसरण किया लेकिन वे किसी भी तरह अपनी व्यक्तिगत शैली को प्रोजेक्ट करने में सक्षम थे। अबनिंद्रनाथ टैगोर और उनके डैपल्स ने बड़े पैमाने पर योगदान दिया। नंदलाल बोस, जैमिनी रॉय, डी। पी। रॉय चौधरी और अन्य ने भारतीय कला के इतिहास में अपनी छाप छोड़ी है। बंगाल स्कूल ने समकालीन भारतीय कला को आंदोलन के लिए एक प्रारंभिक बिंदु प्रदान किया। सबसे अच्छा और सबसे व्यक्तिगत चित्रकार शायद अमृता शेरगिल थी। हालांकि उसने किसी भी भारतीय स्कूल का अनुसरण नहीं किया, लेकिन वह सात साल की छोटी अवधि में कई उल्लेखनीय कार्य कर पाई। तकनीक, विषयों की पसंद और अपने काम के माध्यम से सच्चे भारतीय जीवन को आगे लाने की इच्छा को अगली पीढ़ी ने अच्छी तरह से प्राप्त किया।

 

GLOSSARY

Fresco - wall paintings done in tempera, water colours 

Mythological - legendary 

Revolutionary - innovative 

Static - motionless 

Solemn - serious 

Uniformity - regularity

 Vividly - strikingly 

Colonial Art - an art form established in British rules in India. 

Expressionism - an art through which emotion, feeling, etc. are expressed.

INTEXT QUESTIONS 8.1

Q.1. What is the medium of Hamsa Damayanti?

Ans: Hamsa Damayanti is painted in oil on canvas.

Q.2. What does the painting  Hamsa Damayanti depict?

Ans:  Hamsa Damayanti is listening message from her lover Nala. The swan is narrating her love story.

Q.3. What was the vital link Ravi Varma provided?

Ans: Ravi Varma provided the vital link between the traditional Indian art and Western realism.

Q.4. What printing process Ravi Verma   used to reproduce his paintings?

Ans: Oleograph  is a printing process. Ravi Verma used this process to reproduce his paintings.

INTEXT QUESTIONS 8.2

Q.1. Which Europeon styles influenced Amrita most? 

Ans: Amrita was very much influenced by post- Impressionism.

Q.2. How many figures are there on the painting "Brahmacharies".

Ans: Five figures are represented on the painting "Brahmacharies". 

Q.3. State the main features of the painting "Brahmacharies" composition.

Ans: The painting "Brahmacharies" is expressed on the horizontal plane with vertical placement of figures.

Q.4. In which year was it painted?

Ans: The painting "Brahmacharies" was painted in the year 1938.

INTEXT QUESTIONS 8.3

Q.1. What were the themes Gaganendranath chose to paint between 1910 and 1921?

Ans: Gaganendranath chose  the themes such as the sketches of Himalayas and life of Chaitanyan to paint between 1910 and 1921.

Q.2. Which Europeon style influenced his painting "Atrium"?

Ans: Gaganendranat's painting "Atrium" is greatly influenced by cubism.  

Q.3. Who do Gaganendranat's cartoons reflect? 

Ans: His cartoons reflect the scenes of Kolkata and the funny side of the life of its citizens.

Q.4. What is the medium of the painting "Atrium"?

Ans: The painting "Atrium" is created in water colour on paper.

TERMINAL EXERCISES

Q.1. Write in brief what kind of art evolved after Company Art declined in India?

Ans: Modern Indian art took its birth after the Company art declined in India. The social conditionals prevalent during the period proved very conducive to the growth of different schools in the country. These schools helped the artists to develop their styles. During this period the Indian artists followed the European  techniques in their paintings. Raja Ravi  Varma  worked hard to reviveIndian subjects on the western style. the establishment of Bengal School at Santiniketan was a positive step in this direction because this school helped the Indian artists in their development on the western line.

Q.2. Describe the subjects of Raja Ravi Verma’s paintings.

Ans: Raja Ravi Varma  painted the mythological subjects and portraiture. In the series of his woeks we find he has projected the heroines as the central figure. We can see his paintings of Indian divinities in the countless homes and shrines. Besides, Ravi Varma is noted for his paintings which depict the episodes. These epoisods come from the story of Dusyanta-Shankuntla, Nala- Damayanti, and from the epic Mahabharata.

Q.3. Describe the composition of the painting “Brahmacharies”. 

Ans:The Brahmachares which was painted in 1938 by Amrita is a fine example of  understanding of the Hindu faith which is still prevalent in the traditionalist South India. The painting shows five male figures. She saw the brahmachari students in an ashram. She succeeded in expressing the simplicity of these young Brahmin students as symbols of devotion in the Hindu faith. The painting is composed on a horizontal plane with vertical placement of the figures. Stress was laid on the variety of colour of the bodies. A deep red background, white dhotis and neutral foreground of greenish gray do not disturb the calmness of the whole composition. The dhotis have variations of whites, though different but so subtle that it gives an impression of uniformity. The off white of the central figure with black and brown bodies around against the deep red background are used with skill.

Q.4. Write a paragraph on Gaganendranath Tagore’s style of painting.

Ans:Gaganendranath Tagore was born in 1867 in the Tagore family in Kolkata. He was a leading figure in contemporary Indian painters. His important works from 1910-1921 were the sketches of the Himalayas, the life of Chaitanya through art in a sequence and the wonderful drawings depicting the Indian life. On one hand he supported his brother Abanindranath and on the other hand he showed his inclination towards Cubist School in Europe. Later in his career he developed a distinct style of his own and his own brand of cubism. The core of cubism was to expose in abstract geometric structures. He developed his technique after a long period of experimentation.