Monday, October 25, 2010

Sankaracharya: by Raja Ravi Varma

Raja Ravi Varma - Sankaracharya

2 comments:

Sujit said...

Would you know where is the original of the painting? Was it a full size painting or just a lithoprint or post card?

Unknown said...

The painting (of early 1900s) depicts Adi Shankaracharya by Raja Ravi Varma, and it is a reproduction from a print from Ravi Varma's studio. However, the exact details of the painting or its current location are not known.

During his lifetime, Raja Ravi Varma is known to have developed techniques for reproducing prints (oleographs or lithographs) of paintings so that his art can be made available to a wider audience. Reproduction facilities (crude versions of color printing presses of today’s times) were also established by him. His pioneering work in such fields is said to have given birth to the popular calendar art of India. So, it is possible that this is one such work from which prints were produced, and possibly it was painted for that purpose.
Also note that techniques for painting for lithographs, wood cuts, etc. can be different and the original shall not have the qualities of oil paintings. And in most cases, the prints themselves are considered originals, and the original works are often not sold or preserved, and hence the original may not exist today.

Maybe, let us hope, some more knowledgeable person will tell us later where the original is now.
Anyway, sorry for the late reply.

Thanks for your visit and comment.