Why do you think some artists wanted to develop a national style of art?
Some artists rejected the art of Ravi Varma as imitative and westernised, and declared that such a style was unsuitable for depicting the nation's ancient myths and legends. They felt that a genuine Indian style of painting had to draw inspiration from non-Western art traditions, and try to capture the spiritual essence of the East. These artists broke away from the convention of oil painting and the realistic style, and turned for inspiration to medieval Indian traditions of miniature painting and the ancient art of mural painting in the Ajanta caves. Abanindranath Tagore was one of the first artists who wanted to develop a national style of art
Why did some artists produce cheap popular prints? What influence would such prints have had on the minds of people who looked at them?
In what way did the British history paintings in India reflect the attitudes of imperial conquerors?
Point out which of the following were brought in with British art:
(a) oil painting (b) miniatures (c) life-size portrait painting (d) use of perspective (e) mural art
1. Fill in the blanks:
(a) The art form which observed carefully and tried to capture exactly what the eye saw is called _________.
(b) The style of painting which showed Indian landscape as a quaint, unexplored land is called _________.
(c) Paintings which showed the social lives of Europeans in India are called _________.
(d) Paintings which depicted scenes from British imperial history and their victories are called _________.
Why did the scroll painters and potters come to Kalighat? Why did they begin to paint new themes?
Describe in your own words one painting from this chapter which suggests that the British were more powerful than Indians. How does the artist depict this?