During 18th century Indian culture started to take its own from and a new development of art forms are also started showing. With this establishment, came collaborations. Contemporary art leads to a lot of collaborations and this became more frequent for Chinese and Indian artist. There was a change in the styles of art and became less detailed and elaborate with new themes. There emerged some rising artist that are starting to combine both tradition and modern art to create a bridge between the styles.
M F Hussain
In the late nineteenth century, the old traditions of painting had more or less died out which started by the British. During the colonial era, Western influences had started to make an impact on Indian art. Some artists developed a style that used Western ideas of composition, perspective and realism to illustrate Indian themes, Raja Ravi Verma being prominent among them The protagonists of Indian art such as Raja Ravi Verma drew on Western traditions and techniques including oil paint and easel painting.
M F Hussain
Meantime a modern Indian art movement with the Bengal school of art was started which It was succeeded by the Santiniketan school and led by Rabindranath Tagore harking back to idyllic rural folk and rural life. The mantle of the Bengal School was taken up when Rabindranath Tagore established the visionary university of Santiniketan, a university focussed on the preservation and upliftment of Indian culture, values and heritage. This new school of art drew from the rich cultural heritage of India.
Raja Ravi Verma’s Painting
Despite its country-wide influence in the early years, the importance of the School declined. Those associated with this Indo-Far Eastern model included Nandla Bose, Binode Bihari Mukherji, B C Sanyal, Vinayak Shivaram Masoji, Beohar Rammanohar Sinha, and subsequently their students A Ramachandran, Tan Yuan Chameli, and a few others. The Bengal school’s influence on Indian art scene gradually started alleviating with the spread of modernist ideas post-independence.
Kshitindra Mojumdar
By the time of Independence in 1947, several schools of art in India provided access to modern techniques and ideas. Galleries were established to showcase these artists. Modern Indian art typically shows the influence of Western styles, but is often inspired by Indian themes and images. Major artists are beginning to gain international recognition, initially among the Indian diaspora, but also among non-Indian audiences.
Kshitindra Mojumdar
Nandlal Bose
Nandlal Bose
