| Medium | : | Tempera |
|---|---|---|
| Height | : | 3.5 inch / 8.9 cm |
| Width | : | 6.5 inch / 16.5 cm |
| Dimension | : | W: 16.5 cm × H: 8.9 cm |
An exquisite Jamini Roy tempera on paper, this folk-inspired composition depicts a stylized elephant within a decorative border. With earthy colors, bold contours, and rhythmic patterns, the work embodies Roy’s celebrated return to indigenous forms and his mastery of modernist simplification.
Jamini Roy | Untitled | Tempera on Paper | 3.5 x 6.5 inches | Circa
This artwork is a fine example of Jamini Roy’s folk-inspired style, painted in tempera on paper. The composition presents a stylized animal figure, likely an elephant, rendered in a highly simplified and almost symbolic form. The oval, patterned body with concentric layers of white, red, and earthy tones gives the painting a rhythmic quality, while the thick black outlines recall the linear strength of traditional Bengali patachitra. The border of dots and patterns further enhances the folk aesthetic, framing the subject in a decorative yet primitive manner. Roy’s intention was not naturalistic representation, but rather to capture the spirit and essence of indigenous art, making this work an elegant blend of abstraction and tradition.
One of india’s most loved artists, Jamini Roy is remembered for forging a unique indian aesthetic for modern art by bringing together elements of traditional bengali folk art and kalighat patachitras, rendered in clean lines and earthy colours.
Born on 11 April 1887 in a landowning family in Bankura district of Bengal, Roy trained in European academic-realist painting at the Government College of Arts and Crafts, Calcutta, and began his career painting landscapes and portraits.
Soon, moving away from these, he started experimenting with a more indigenous visual vocabulary. Level surfaces, flattening of design in depth, and the use of dissonant primary colours were aspects of folk painting that Roy incorporated in his work. Also, he took up the volumetric forms of the Kalighat patachitras. However, unlike the spontaneous brushwork of the traditional patuas, Roy’s lines were more restrained and precisely delineated.
Roy would paint several versions of a subject, breaking and reforming the theme over months. Turning his family into a production unit, he tried to emulate a craft-guild mode of artistic production. He painted on a wide range of themes—common people, mythological tales, Christian iconography, as well as visual characteristics of home-sewn Bengal quilts and Byzantine icons.
Roy was awarded the Viceroy’s gold medal in 1935, the Padma Bhushan in 1955, and elected a fellow of the Lalit Kala Akademi in 1956. Declared a National Treasure artist in 1976, his works cannot be exported. He passed away on 24 April 1972.
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