Madhavchandra Giri
1880
paint
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
1880
paint
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
Dominant colour
Madhavchandra Giri is a 1880 paint by Unknown, a Impressionism work, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.
This painting shows a dark elephant carrying a bright yellow howdah—like a small tower—on its back. Inside the howdah, a man in a striped turban plays a stringed instrument, while a smaller figure sits on the elephant’s neck. The elephant has a red saddle and a red cloth draped over its side, with gold swirls on its legs. The howdah’s lattice walls let you see the man’s legs and the world outside, while the elephant’s trunk hangs loose. The colors are bold: reds, yellows, and greens stand out against the elephant’s dark skin. Next, check out the Victoria and Albert Museum to see more paintings like this.
This watercolour and tin alloy painting on paper depicts an episode from the Tarakeshwar affair of 1873, showing the Mahant, or Brahmin priest of Tarakeshwar, riding in a howdah on an elephant. The work reflects the social and moral conflicts of colonial Calcutta, where the scandal involving the Mahant, Elokeshi, and her husband Nabinchandra Banerji became a public spectacle. Produced between 1875 and 1880, the image is part of a series of 15 Kalighat paintings that documented the affair, highlighting the Mahant’s perceived power and influence. The style is characteristic of Kalighat art,…
Read the full account in the museum source.
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