Patna (Eastern India)
Opaque watercolour on European paper
This decorative Company School painting depicts three tinsmiths at work, crafting copper vessels amidst an array of tools and variously shaped pots and containers.
The term ‘Company Painting’ has come to be used by art historians for a special type of Indian painting which was produced for mainly British patrons. It was an attempt by Indian artists to adjust their styles to British needs and to paint subjects that appealed to them. They first made an appearance in the Madras Presidency in the mid-18th century and subsequently in Murshidabad, Patna, Benares, Calcutta, Delhi, Punjab, and Western India. The paintings depict in great detail the architecture, costumes, trades, modes of transport, festivals, customs, and flora and fauna of the period. They thus also served as authentic records—used to illustrate letters, journals, travel narratives, and more—and remain invaluable documents of a way of life that had endured for centuries but is now rapidly vanishing.
In Patna, an influx of Kayasth artists from Murshidabad, including Sewak Ram, transformed the city into a centre for Company painting. Artists produced detailed sets depicting occupations, ceremonies, and festivals, often using sepia wash brightened with touches of colour, reflecting the tastes of British patrons such as Lord Minto and Lord Amherst.
Painting Size (cms): 22(H) x 18.5(W)
Painting Size (inches): 8.5(H) x 7.5(W)
