Rama and Makaraksha
1890
paint
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
1890
paint
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
Dominant colour
Rama and Makaraksha is a 1890 paint by Unknown, a Impressionism work, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.
This painting shows two figures in bright, flat colors. One is blue-skinned, kneeling and holding a bow, while the other has a blue face with red accents, wearing a yellow outfit with black dots. The background is plain, and the lines are bold and simple. The blue-skinned figure looks like a warrior, while the other figure has a snake coiled around their head. The writing at the bottom is in a script that looks like Bengali. Next, check out the Victoria and Albert Museum to see more works like this.
This watercolour and tin alloy painting on paper depicts the scene from the Ramayana in which Rama kills the demon Makaraksha. Produced around 1890, it reflects the Kalighat style that emerged in Calcutta during the 19th century, characterized by bold colors, simplified forms, and rapid brushwork. The work belongs to a tradition of Bengali artists who, from the 1830s onward, created narrative paintings addressing local mythology and social tensions within a colonial context.
Read the full account in the museum source.
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