From February 13, get ready to immerse yourselves in the vibrant and colourful world of celebrated artist Jamini Roy's creations. Known for spurning Western aesthetics and embracing Indian traditional art to recreate Indian mythology and an imagery of Bengali rural life, a cursory online search throws up the price range of a Janmini Roy painting to hover anywhere between 60 USD and 579600 USD, depending on the size and medium of artwork.
Curators Kounteya Sinha and Oiendrila Ray Kapur bring together 40 of the legend's greatest works from a private collection for public viewing at the Middleton Art Gallery. The iconic collection of paintings has been held by art connoisseur Kamal Kumar Narottamdas Parekh for over the past 30 years. This is the first time that he has decided to show the works at his newly opened Middleton Art gallery.
"I became a serious collector of art from the year 1993 and my first buy of Jamini Roy paintings was from Sanghamitra Roy and her husband Ashoke Roy. Sanghamitra is the daughter of Amiya Roy who is the fourth son of late Jamini Roy. I continued to collect Jamini Roy over the next 25 years," says Parekh, who started collecting serious art three decades ago.
The repertoire includes the artist's iconic work on Christianity and his fascination with Jesus Christ besides his unseen works from the Ramayana and his unparalleled repertoire on Lord Krishna. The highlight of the exhibition are the three large works of Roy on The Last Supper that will be there for view.
Oiendrila Ray Kapur who is curating the show with Sinha says the collection of work to be exhibited will also include his trademark Tribal women, his earliest work on the Ramayana and his iconic animal series that he was very famous for.
In his illustrious career, Roy is said to have created over 20,000 artworks most of which somehow did not bear the artist's signature. Among his works, the most epic ones include the mother and child series, the cat and lobster, Bal Krishnas, Tribal Women, and the Ramayana spread over 17 canvases (1946).
"Roy was one of the most prolific and iconic artists to come out of Bengal - one of the first modernists. Art lovers in Kolkata, where Roy primarily lived and died working all his life, are in for a real treat. For the first time, people will get to see his works on Christianity in such depth giving a peek into the artist's early fascination with Christian themes. The three Last Supper paintings are made in three different styles, all with big eyes, a trademark of Jamini Roy's artworks," says Kounteya.
In 1976, the Archeological Survey of India, Ministry of Culture and the Government of India declared Roy's works among the "Nine Masters" whose work, to be henceforth considered "to be art treasures, having regard to their artistic and aesthetic value".
The show is on till February 28.