Emergence of Modern Art in India

Unnoticed by the most remarkable art critics of that time, E.B. Havell (principal of Calcutta School of Art for more than a decade) and Ananda Coomaraswamy who championed the functional integrity of art with life, flourished an art form which was stunningly original. This was the art of Kalighat paintings, called 'pats' painted by anonymous 'patuas' as souvenirs, for pilgrims visiting the famous ‘Kali Temple’. This authentic art form was completely ignored by the ‘bhadra lok’ (affluent class) of that time, possibly because of their cheapness and easy availability. While all the previous modern art experiments were carried out by the elite class which stuck to Indian history and mythology, the Kalighat paintings were a creation of humble painters and made bold and witty social statements on the everyday life of that time along with depicting mythology .

These patua – artists had perfected or technique learned from foreigners using cheap water colours to develop a unique and highly distinctive style. All but ignored by the art circle of the time, the Kalighat paintings did however, strongly influence and inspire two famous artists, Jamini Roy and K.G. Subramanyam.