Untitled

Jogesh Chandra Seal lived only thirty-one years, but left behind exquisite examples of his mastery over the realistic tradition of painting. He trained at the rebel Jubilee Art Academy in Calcutta that went against the principles of the Bengal School. This painting comes from a time when many Indian artists, especially on the western coast, were making realistic landscapes, often en plein air. In this Untitled oil, Seal captures the magnificent stillness of dawn as the sun’s rays break through the clouds; the boats are quiet, but the birds in the foreground animate a perfectly tranquil picture.