In the visual chronicles of rural Bengal created by several artists in various mediums, the prints of Haren Das stand out for their bucolic felicity and his single-minded pursuit of the medium when paintings were favoured over prints. In this woodcut, Das puts focus on a young maiden, taking a break from work and gazing into the distance ruminatively, perhaps waiting for someone. Little details of her being are exquisite—fresh flowers in her hair, tribal metal jewellery, her hands holding a bamboo rafter instinctively, a pot beside her and field in the distance. The work shows the printmaker’s ability to use light within the technicalities of the medium to render the image sharply and in detail.
published references
Singh, Kishore, ed., A Visual History of Indian Modern Art, Volume III: Revivalism and Beyond (New Delhi: DAG, 2015), p. 432 Singh, Kishore, ed., Navrasa: The Nine Emotions of Art (New Delhi: DAG, 2020), p. 28
Haren Das
Moody Maid
1963
Woodcut on paper
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Haren Das
Moody Maid
1963
Woodcut on paper
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