A Bengali courtesan
1890
paint
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
1890
paint
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
A Bengali courtesan is a 1890 paint by Unknown, a Patna School of Painting work, depicting Kalighat, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.
This painting shows a Bengali courtesan seated on a patterned rug. She wears a red sari and gold jewelry. Her face is calm and steady. The artist used soft brushstrokes to catch light on her silk sari. Details fade in and out, like her features are melting into the background. It’s not sharp or crisp. Look up the Victoria and Albert Museum to see this painting up close.
A watercolour and tin-alloy painting on paper depicts a Bengali courtesan adorned with silver jewellery, holding her sari over her head while exposing her right breast; the silver ornaments reflect the traditional style of patua artists. The work features the courtesan’s full figure, rendered in pinkish-brown tones, against a pale blue sari with pronounced folds, embodying the bold, curvaceous aesthetic noted by WG Archer. The painting was donated by M N Varvill in 1955 and reflects the Kalighat tradition of Calcutta, where artists from rural Bengal produced vibrant, simplified images…
Read the full account in the museum source.
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