New Found Lands: The Indian Landscape from Empire to Freedom

The picturesque vision of William Hodges, the first British professional landscape painter to visit India, treated architecture as a component of landscape. The fort of Monghyr depicted here was built in the sultanate and Mughal era. It was still in use, under British control, when Hodges visited in 1781. His picturesque aesthetic favours the irregular forms of ruins, so he exaggerates its state of decay and thereby implies that India’s greatness is a thing of the past.

Thomas Daniell toured India with his nephew William between 1786 and 1793. In this classic picturesque composition, the soaring temple is presented as a proud sentinel, overlooking the vast plain below, but also as somewhat forlorn, being partially ruined, sprouting a tree from its side, and visited by a solitary pilgrim. 

Major William Parker served in the Bengal Army, returning to Britain in 1807. Many officers of his era were trained in draughtsmanship, for the purposes of surveying. They deployed their skill in their leisure hours to produce amateur but accomplished landscapes. This view shows figures smoking and cooking on a bank of the River Ganga, behind one of the mosques of Rajmahal, built during the Mughal period.

The picturesque vision of William Hodges, the first British professional landscape painter to visit India, treated architecture as a component of landscape. The fort of Monghyr depicted here was built in the sultanate and Mughal era. It was still in use, under British control, when Hodges visited in 1781. His picturesque aesthetic favours the irregular forms of ruins, so he exaggerates its state of decay and thereby implies that India’s greatness is a thing of the past.

Thomas Daniell toured India with his nephew William between 1786 and 1793. In this classic picturesque composition, the soaring temple is presented as a proud sentinel, overlooking the vast plain below, but also as somewhat forlorn, being partially ruined, sprouting a tree from its side, and visited by a solitary pilgrim. 

Major William Parker served in the Bengal Army, returning to Britain in 1807. Many officers of his era were trained in draughtsmanship, for the purposes of surveying. They deployed their skill in their leisure hours to produce amateur but accomplished landscapes. This view shows figures smoking and cooking on a bank of the River Ganga, behind one of the mosques of Rajmahal, built during the Mughal period.

The picturesque vision of William Hodges, the first British professional landscape painter to visit India, treated architecture as a component of landscape. The fort of Monghyr depicted here was built in the sultanate and Mughal era. It was still in use, under British control, when Hodges visited in 1781. His picturesque aesthetic favours the irregular forms of ruins, so he exaggerates its state of decay and thereby implies that India’s greatness is a thing of the past.

Thomas Daniell toured India with his nephew William between 1786 and 1793. In this classic picturesque composition, the soaring temple is presented as a proud sentinel, overlooking the vast plain below, but also as somewhat forlorn, being partially ruined, sprouting a tree from its side, and visited by a solitary pilgrim. 

Major William Parker served in the Bengal Army, returning to Britain in 1807. Many officers of his era were trained in draughtsmanship, for the purposes of surveying. They deployed their skill in their leisure hours to produce amateur but accomplished landscapes. This view shows figures smoking and cooking on a bank of the River Ganga, behind one of the mosques of Rajmahal, built during the Mughal period.

L. N. Taskar taught at the J. J. School of Art where he helped to promote a naturalistic style of landscape. This lively scene depicts people milling about in the Jilaukhana, the forecourt immediately in front of the Taj Mahal in Agra. The gateway is the entrance to the forecourt from the market area known as Taj Ganj.

A student at the J. J. School of Art, S. L. Haldankar emerged as a versatile artist, winning important portrait commissions. He also produced naturalistic landscapes in both oil and watercolour, often focusing—as here—on atmospheric effects over water

Prema Pathare studied at the J. J. School of Art in Bombay under W. E. Gladstone Solomon, a pugnacious advocate of realism in art and severe critic of Bengali revivalism. She painted numerous urban landscapes. In this view of a traditional gateway and market, she uses the contrast between sunlit surfaces and deep shadows to create an animated rhythm, complementing the bustle of the figures.

L. N. Taskar taught at the J. J. School of Art where he helped to promote a naturalistic style of landscape. This lively scene depicts people milling about in the Jilaukhana, the forecourt immediately in front of the Taj Mahal in Agra. The gateway is the entrance to the forecourt from the market area known as Taj Ganj.

A student at the J. J. School of Art, S. L. Haldankar emerged as a versatile artist, winning important portrait commissions. He also produced naturalistic landscapes in both oil and watercolour, often focusing—as here—on atmospheric effects over water

Prema Pathare studied at the J. J. School of Art in Bombay under W. E. Gladstone Solomon, a pugnacious advocate of realism in art and severe critic of Bengali revivalism. She painted numerous urban landscapes. In this view of a traditional gateway and market, she uses the contrast between sunlit surfaces and deep shadows to create an animated rhythm, complementing the bustle of the figures.

L. N. Taskar taught at the J. J. School of Art where he helped to promote a naturalistic style of landscape. This lively scene depicts people milling about in the Jilaukhana, the forecourt immediately in front of the Taj Mahal in Agra. The gateway is the entrance to the forecourt from the market area known as Taj Ganj.

A student at the J. J. School of Art, S. L. Haldankar emerged as a versatile artist, winning important portrait commissions. He also produced naturalistic landscapes in both oil and watercolour, often focusing—as here—on atmospheric effects over water

Prema Pathare studied at the J. J. School of Art in Bombay under W. E. Gladstone Solomon, a pugnacious advocate of realism in art and severe critic of Bengali revivalism. She painted numerous urban landscapes. In this view of a traditional gateway and market, she uses the contrast between sunlit surfaces and deep shadows to create an animated rhythm, complementing the bustle of the figures.

Haren Das studied graphic arts at the Government College of Art and Craft in Calcutta, selecting a specialisation which was not fashionable at the time, but his leading example and mastery helped to promote printmaking as a medium. Though he produced many images of rural people at work, his predominant vision was of a quiet, unchanging landscape.

Indra Dugar received no formal artistic training but learned from the example of his more famous father, Hirachand Dugar, and imbibed the influence of Nandalal Bose while doing his schooling at Santiniketan. The broad expanse of vivid green, of the algae coating the surface of the pond, contrasts with the bright white of the parched bank, to make this one of Indra Dugar’s most arresting compositions. A fierce heat is suggested by the total absence of shadow.

Located on the River Ganga in Bihar, the town and fort of Monghyr were developed by rulers of the sultanate and Mughal periods. A pioneer of Indian printmaking, Mukul Dey here revisits the site, which Hodges had portrayed in a print nearly two hundred years before.

Haren Das studied graphic arts at the Government College of Art and Craft in Calcutta, selecting a specialisation which was not fashionable at the time, but his leading example and mastery helped to promote printmaking as a medium. Though he produced many images of rural people at work, his predominant vision was of a quiet, unchanging landscape.

Indra Dugar received no formal artistic training but learned from the example of his more famous father, Hirachand Dugar, and imbibed the influence of Nandalal Bose while doing his schooling at Santiniketan. The broad expanse of vivid green, of the algae coating the surface of the pond, contrasts with the bright white of the parched bank, to make this one of Indra Dugar’s most arresting compositions. A fierce heat is suggested by the total absence of shadow.

Located on the River Ganga in Bihar, the town and fort of Monghyr were developed by rulers of the sultanate and Mughal periods. A pioneer of Indian printmaking, Mukul Dey here revisits the site, which Hodges had portrayed in a print nearly two hundred years before.

Haren Das studied graphic arts at the Government College of Art and Craft in Calcutta, selecting a specialisation which was not fashionable at the time, but his leading example and mastery helped to promote printmaking as a medium. Though he produced many images of rural people at work, his predominant vision was of a quiet, unchanging landscape.

Indra Dugar received no formal artistic training but learned from the example of his more famous father, Hirachand Dugar, and imbibed the influence of Nandalal Bose while doing his schooling at Santiniketan. The broad expanse of vivid green, of the algae coating the surface of the pond, contrasts with the bright white of the parched bank, to make this one of Indra Dugar’s most arresting compositions. A fierce heat is suggested by the total absence of shadow.

Located on the River Ganga in Bihar, the town and fort of Monghyr were developed by rulers of the sultanate and Mughal periods. A pioneer of Indian printmaking, Mukul Dey here revisits the site, which Hodges had portrayed in a print nearly two hundred years before.

One of the most celebrated teachers at Kala Bhavana in Bengal, Ramkinkar Baij is best remembered for his large sculptural groups depicting members of the Santhal community living nearby. His watercolour sketches are characterised by a strong, seemingly spontaneous black line, overlaid with patches of vivid colour.

Born in Chittagong, Sudhir Khastgir studied at Kala Bhavana in Santiniketan under Nandalal Bose. Like his classmate Ramkinkar Baij, he was both a sculptor and a painter, producing portraits and landscapes. The high horizon, close view, and intense colouring in this work combine to create a sense of heat and enclosure.

Gopal Ghose was a founder member of the Calcutta Group, set up in 1943. His work at that time focused on recording atrocities and human misery. By the late 1950s he was producing images with a different kind of intensity: highly coloured visions of imagined landscapes.

One of the most celebrated teachers at Kala Bhavana in Bengal, Ramkinkar Baij is best remembered for his large sculptural groups depicting members of the Santhal community living nearby. His watercolour sketches are characterised by a strong, seemingly spontaneous black line, overlaid with patches of vivid colour.

Born in Chittagong, Sudhir Khastgir studied at Kala Bhavana in Santiniketan under Nandalal Bose. Like his classmate Ramkinkar Baij, he was both a sculptor and a painter, producing portraits and landscapes. The high horizon, close view, and intense colouring in this work combine to create a sense of heat and enclosure.

Gopal Ghose was a founder member of the Calcutta Group, set up in 1943. His work at that time focused on recording atrocities and human misery. By the late 1950s he was producing images with a different kind of intensity: highly coloured visions of imagined landscapes.

One of the most celebrated teachers at Kala Bhavana in Bengal, Ramkinkar Baij is best remembered for his large sculptural groups depicting members of the Santhal community living nearby. His watercolour sketches are characterised by a strong, seemingly spontaneous black line, overlaid with patches of vivid colour.

Born in Chittagong, Sudhir Khastgir studied at Kala Bhavana in Santiniketan under Nandalal Bose. Like his classmate Ramkinkar Baij, he was both a sculptor and a painter, producing portraits and landscapes. The high horizon, close view, and intense colouring in this work combine to create a sense of heat and enclosure.

Gopal Ghose was a founder member of the Calcutta Group, set up in 1943. His work at that time focused on recording atrocities and human misery. By the late 1950s he was producing images with a different kind of intensity: highly coloured visions of imagined landscapes.

K. K. Hebbar studied at the Sir J. J. School of Art in Bombay, and later in Paris and his early work owes much to Impressionism. In the late 1970s he was much drawn to Rajasthan. The rich texture but simple palette of this painting evoke the heat and the empty expanse of the desert, as the intensely coloured sky looks like burnished metal.

Also a student of the the Sir J. J. School of Art in Bombay, A. A. Almelkar’s work focusses on traditional Indian subjects, painted in modernist styles. This work, which seems to show a festival taking place at night, exudes an expressionist intensity.

B. Prabha studied first at the Nagpur School of Art, and later at the Sir J. J. School of Art in Bombay. She is best known for her graceful but solemn depictions of rural women. She often deployed a deliberately controlled and restricted palette, as in this image of a group of idle boats. It would be hard to account for every fiercely scored line in terms of masts or rigging, and the line of boats is merely a starting point for a linear pattern that begins to edge towards abstraction.

K. K. Hebbar studied at the Sir J. J. School of Art in Bombay, and later in Paris and his early work owes much to Impressionism. In the late 1970s he was much drawn to Rajasthan. The rich texture but simple palette of this painting evoke the heat and the empty expanse of the desert, as the intensely coloured sky looks like burnished metal.

Also a student of the the Sir J. J. School of Art in Bombay, A. A. Almelkar’s work focusses on traditional Indian subjects, painted in modernist styles. This work, which seems to show a festival taking place at night, exudes an expressionist intensity.

B. Prabha studied first at the Nagpur School of Art, and later at the Sir J. J. School of Art in Bombay. She is best known for her graceful but solemn depictions of rural women. She often deployed a deliberately controlled and restricted palette, as in this image of a group of idle boats. It would be hard to account for every fiercely scored line in terms of masts or rigging, and the line of boats is merely a starting point for a linear pattern that begins to edge towards abstraction.

K. K. Hebbar studied at the Sir J. J. School of Art in Bombay, and later in Paris and his early work owes much to Impressionism. In the late 1970s he was much drawn to Rajasthan. The rich texture but simple palette of this painting evoke the heat and the empty expanse of the desert, as the intensely coloured sky looks like burnished metal.

Also a student of the the Sir J. J. School of Art in Bombay, A. A. Almelkar’s work focusses on traditional Indian subjects, painted in modernist styles. This work, which seems to show a festival taking place at night, exudes an expressionist intensity.

B. Prabha studied first at the Nagpur School of Art, and later at the Sir J. J. School of Art in Bombay. She is best known for her graceful but solemn depictions of rural women. She often deployed a deliberately controlled and restricted palette, as in this image of a group of idle boats. It would be hard to account for every fiercely scored line in terms of masts or rigging, and the line of boats is merely a starting point for a linear pattern that begins to edge towards abstraction.

The modern landscape attempts less to record the appearance of a place than to convey a personal experience of it. This Untitled landscape by Sakti Burman seems to recall a joyful encounter with the gondolas and canals of Venice.

Born in East Bengal (now Bangladesh), Ganesh Haloi moved with his family to Calcutta following the Partition and later studied at the Government College of Art and Craft. His early landscapes are nostalgic and picturesque evocations of his lost homeland, but in the 1970s he moved towards abstraction, creating compositions like this one, which suggest landscape forms while brimming with ambiguity. 

The modern landscape attempts less to record the appearance of a place than to convey a personal experience of it. This Untitled landscape by Sakti Burman seems to recall a joyful encounter with the gondolas and canals of Venice.

Born in East Bengal (now Bangladesh), Ganesh Haloi moved with his family to Calcutta following the Partition and later studied at the Government College of Art and Craft. His early landscapes are nostalgic and picturesque evocations of his lost homeland, but in the 1970s he moved towards abstraction, creating compositions like this one, which suggest landscape forms while brimming with ambiguity.