A Study from Life

One of the busiest painters of his time in the genre of portraiture, V. A. Mali created works in academic realism style, which he learnt at Sir J. J. School of Art, Bombay. An exceptionally gifted artist, Mali’s strength was in creating portraits, as seen in A Study from Life that captured every line and wrinkle of the face, every fold of the garment, besides facial expressions and an emphasis on shadow and light to bring out the depth of the painting and highlight each expression of his subject.