A great antique print by Ravi Varma measuring 7x10 inches
Raja Ravi Varma)
Raja Ravi Varma) was an Indian painter who achieved recognition for his depiction of scenes from the epics of the Mahabharata and Ramayana. His paintings are considered to be among the best examples of the fusion of Indian traditions with the techniques of European academic art.
Raja Ravi Varma is most remembered for his paintings of beautiful sari clad women, who were portrayed as very shapely and graceful. His exposure in the west came when he won the first prize in Vienna Art Exhibition in 1873. After a successful career as a painter, Raja Ravi Varma died in (1906) at the age of 58. He is generally considered as one among the greatest painters in the history of Indian art.
Early life
Ravi Varma, Woman Playing the VeenaRavi Varma was born to Umamba Thampuratti and Neelakandan Bhattathiripad in the royal palace of Kilimanoor, which is situated 25 miles from Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum), in Kerala, India. Ravi Varma showed talent at a young age. He got the patronage of Ayilyam Thirunal Maharaja of Travancore when he was 14 years of age, and was taught by the palace painter Rama Swamy Naidu. He was later taught oil painting by a British painter, Theodor Jenson. The power and forceful expression of European painting fascinated Ravi Varma, which came across to him as strikingly contrasting to stylized Indian artwork.
One of few landscapes painted by Raja Ravi Varma
Professional life
Raja Ravi Varma came to widespread acclaim after he won an award for an exhibition of his paintings at Vienna in 1873[1] . He travelled throughout India in search of subjects. He often modeled Hindu Goddesses on South Indian women, whom he considered beautiful. Ravi Varma is particularly noted for his paintings depicting episodes from the story of Dushyanta and Shakuntala, and Nala and Damayanti, from the Mahabharata. Ravi Varma's representation of mythological characters has become a part of the Indian imagination of the epics. He is often criticized for being too showy and sentimental in his style. However his work remains very popular in India.
Prominent works
The following is a list of the prominent works of Ravi Varma.
Ravi Varma, Shakuntala, a character in the epic MahabharathaVillage Belle
Lady Lost in Thought
Damayanti Talking to a Swan
The Orchestra
Arjuna and Subhadra
Lady with Fruit
The Heartbroken
Swarbat Player
Shakuntala
Lord Krishna as Ambassador
Jatayu, a bird devotee of Lord Rama is mauled by Rawana
Victory of Meghanada
A Family of Beggars
A Lady Playing Swarbat
Lady Giving Alms at the Temple
Lord Rama Conquers Varuna
Nair Woman
Romancing Couple
Draupadi Dreading to Meet Kichaka
Shantanu and Matsyagandha
Shakuntala Composing a Love Letter to King Dushyanta
Girl in Sage Kanwa's Hermitage (Rishi-Kanya)
Philosophical outlook
Raja Ravi Varma's philosophical outlook is not known or documented, especially his understanding of Western Art forms, though it should be acknowledged that he received formal and systematic training. Those who seek to critically examine his contribution are severely impaired in their project by the absence of any literature written by him. (one would require an interpretation of the diary[2] maintained by his younger Brother, C. Raja Raja Varma, himself an accomplished painter, who in later years assisted him in his paintings and was his personal secretary. [3]
Criticism of Raja Ravi Varma
Ravi Varma's There comes Papa: Lady with ChildRaja Ravi Varma is often criticized for the fact that his paintings overshadowed traditional Indian art forms because of their widespread reproduction as oleo graphs, flooding Indian culture with his version of Indian myths, portrayed with a rather static realism. According to Dasgupta[citation needed], by dispensing with stylisation in favor of stiff academicism, Ravi Varma can be considered as having in one stroke undermined traditional Indian art, which was both dynamic and rich in form and content. One can find an illustration of this argument in the figures of Durga in West Bengal or in the folk form of Madhubani Paintings. In comparison, Ravi Varma's approach clearly lacks this dynamism of expression. Moreover, his approach of frontality has severe limitations in terms of space and movement. By rejecting the traditional models of representation (for example, the Chitrasutra, the treatise on art outlined in Vishnudharmottara Purana), he has reduced mythic heroes to the level of ordinary humans, a form that has been copied in many depictions of mythic history in other media such as cinema and television. Dadasaheb Phalke, considered the father of Indian cinema, is thought to have been influenced by Ravi Varma's static realism.
Contemporary homages
Considering his vast contribution to Indian art, the Government of Kerala has instituted an award called Raja Ravi Varma Puraskaram, which is awarded every year to people who show excellence in the field of art and culture. Awardees include:
K G Subramanian (2001)
M V Devan (2002)
A Ramachandran (2003)
Vasudevan Namboodiri (2004).
Kanai Kunhiraman (2005)
V.S.Valliathan[2006]
A college dedicated to fine arts was also constituted in his honour at Mavelikara, Kerala.
Books on Raja Ravi Varma
In English
Raja Ravi Varma and the Printed Gods of India, Erwin Neumayer & Christine Schelberger, New Delhi, Oxford University Press, 2003
Raja Ravi Varma : The Most Celebrated Painter of India : 1848 - 1906, Classic Collection,Vol I & II. Bangalore, Parsram Mangharam, 2005
Raja Ravi Varma : Portrait of an Artist , The Diary of C. Raja Raja Varma/edited by Erwin Neumayer and Christine Schelberger. New Delhi, Oxford University Press, 2005
Divine Lithography, Enrico Castelli and Giovanni Aprile, New Delhi, Il Tamburo Parlante Documentation Centre and Ethnographic Museum, 2005
In Malayalam
Raja Ravi Varmayum chitrkalayum, Kilimanoor Chandran, Department of Culturural Publications, Kerala Government,1999.
Chithramezhuthu Koyithampuran ,P.N Narayana Pillai.
Raja Ravi Varma, N. Balakrishnan Nair.
On May-31-07 at 16:22:53 PDT, seller added the following information:
 
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