{"id":3224,"date":"2013-07-13T01:46:46","date_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:46:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/?p=3224"},"modified":"2013-07-13T01:46:46","modified_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:46:46","slug":"35-indian-painting-vol-writings-in-bengali-translation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/01-works-of-sri-aurobindo\/02-other-editions\/writings-in-bengali-translation\/35-indian-painting-vol-writings-in-bengali-translation","title":{"rendered":"-35_Indian Painting.htm"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\n\n
\n

\n
\nIndian Painting <\/font><\/b><\/p>\n

\n <\/p>\n

\nAll Western and Eastern nations have been obliged to
\nadmit that our Mother India was an imperishable treasure-
\nhouse of knowledge, spirituality, art and literature. But
\nformerly Europe was under the impression that Indian
\npainting was not so highly developed as our literature and
\nother arts, but was horrible and devoid of beauty. We too,
\nenlightened by European knowledge and looking through
\nEuropean glasses, turned up our noses at the sight of Indian
\npainting and sculpture, thus demonstrating our refined intellect and irreproachable taste. The mansions of the rich
\nbecame filled with Greek statues and things in the ‘cast’ of
\nEnglish paintings or their lifeless imitations, even the walls of
\nthe houses of ordinary people were decorated with frightful
\noil-paintings. The Indians whose tastes and skills in art had
\nbeen unmatched in the world, the Indians whose choice of
\ncolour and form had been naturally faultless, the same
\npeople grew blind, lost the intellectual capacity for seizing
\nthe inner significance and developed a taste even worse than
\nthat of an Italian labourer. Raja Ravi Varma was acclaimed
\nthe best Indian artist. <\/font><\/p>\n

\nHowever, recently thanks to the efforts of some art-lovers
\nthe eyes of the Indians are opening and they are beginning to
\nappreciate their own skill and their own vast wealth of art
\nforms. Animated and inspired by the extra-ordinary genius
\nof Sri Abanindranath Tagore, a few young men are resurrecting the lost art of Indian painting. By virtue of their
\ntalent a new age is being ushered in Bengal. After this, one
\nmay expect that India, instead of looking through the eyes of
\nthe English will see with her own eyes and, discarding the
\nimitations of the West, depend upon her own clear intellect
\nand once again express the" eternal thoughts of India through
\ncolour and form.<\/font><\/p>\n

\nPage-237 <\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\nThere are two reasons for the Europeans dislike of Indian
\npainting. They say Indian paintings are incapable of imitating Nature: instead of drawing a man like a man, a horse
\nlike a horse, a tree like a tree, they draw deformed images; <\/font><\/p>\n

\nthey have no perspective, the pictures appear flat and
\nunnatural. The Europeans second objection used to be that
\nall these pictures lack beauty of form and feeling. This
\nobjection is no longer in their mouths. When they saw the
\nincomparable serenity in our ancient images of Buddha and
\nthe radiance of supernal power in our ancient statues of
\nDurga, they were charmed and stupefied. The greatest
\nacknowledged art-critics of England have admitted that the
\nIndian painter might not know the perspective of Europe,
\nbut the Indian laws of perspective were very beautiful,
\ncomplete and reasonable. It is true, the Indian painter or
\nother artist does not imitate the external world, but not
\nbecause he lacks the capacity: his aim is to go beyond the
\noutward scene and appearance and express the inner feeling
\nand truth. The external shape is only a robe, a disguise of the
\ninner truth\u2014we lose ourselves in the beauty of the mass and
\ncannot see what is hidden within. Therefore, Indian painters
\ndeliberately modified the outer form in order to make it
\nmore suitable for expressing the inner truth. One is amazed
\nto see how beautifully they express the inner truth of an
\nmental state or of an event, in each limb, in the environment,
\nattitude and dress. This, indeed, is the main characteristic of
\nIndian painting, its highest development. <\/font><\/p>\n

\nThe West is busy with the false external perception, they
\nare devotees of the shadow. The-East seeks the inner truth,
\n"we are devotees of the eternal. The West worships the body, we worship the soul. The West is in love with name and
\nform, we can never be satisfied unless we get to the eternal
\nobject. This difference is evident everywhere: as in religion,
\nphilosophy and literature, so in painting and architecture. <\/font><\/p>\n

\nPage-238<\/font><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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