Why Jamini Roy's Visual Language was Truly Avant-Garde
This discussion examines Jamini’s invented language (of modernism) and what makes him a creative genius. This examines his crucial contribution to Modernism in India / the beginnings of true modernism in India.
To understand Jamini Roy, we almost need to understand an artist like Piet Mondrian and what is meant by abstracting away volume and moving away from representational colours.
There is, of course, no connection whatsoever between Piet Mondrian and Jamini Roy - we just use Mondrian as an example to discuss and understand Jamini’s modernism. We are not the first; Partha Mitter has also used this example (of Piet Mondrian's art) in a personal discussion, trying to explain Jamini Roy's creative genius . However, Partha Mitters (1) cited a research paper published in an academic journal that few people have access to.
Mondrian’s Language
This is how Mondrian’s language evolved.
Next the form starts to vanish and is replaced by lines.
Curvilinear shapes start to vanish.
And then finally to a complete reduction and using “pure” colours.
Jamini’s Modernist Language
For Jamini was a portrait painter.
There are numerous books that discuss his portraiture. There is a well-recorded story where Abanindranath had himself requested Jamini to paint another version of Debendranath Tagore’s portrait which was disintegrating due to age. I believe that the portrait is in the Bangiya Sahitya Parishad’s portrait gallery.
Portrait of Ananda Kumar (2), Circa 1920 - his landlord.
Note the age of the painting and oxidation of the oil paint.
Hara Kumar Sarkar at the Indian Museum Calcutta.
Other documented portraits include those of Tarek Nath (Ananda Kumar’s son), Bani Nath (Ananda Kumar’s grandson), Nandorani of Serampore, and possibly others.
Portraits of Ananda Kumar (his Bagh Bazar landlord) and his family - Tarek Nath and Bani Nath were likely done in lieu of rent. The portrait of Nandorani was a commission and based on a photograph. She had died within two years of childbirth, and her portrait was to always remind the child of the mother. It is exactly this trend of making commissioned portraits of mostly dead people, and certainly a desire to explore that, prompted him to move away from this trade. We can see that he stopped commissioned portraiture in the first half of the 1920s.
We find numerous experimental studies from circa 1925/30. It is difficult to exactly date them. The shift from portraiture to these experiments is, in itself, a bold and drastic step.
Jamini Roy's early experiments.
And the final creative output looked something like the following:
Jamini Roy, circa 1930, tempera on cloth.
Above, an early execution on Cloth using primitive pigment colours.
Note that volume, representational colours, most of the form, the background has all been abstracted away in a folk/indigenous setting. Volume is added subtly, using shadow lines or floating eyes. This was the genius of Jamini. The discussion on Kalighat patua and Village Patchitra only detracts; while they have their place, they do not allow most to see the true extent of his genius and the totally new language of modernism that he proposed.
And of course, the recognition of Alpana (religious floor art).
Both as a way of abstracting form.
Jamini Roy, Untitled (Alpana), circa 1930, tempera on cloth pasted on board.
And the usage of its drawing/execution style.
Jamini Roy, circa 1932, tempera on cloth.
It is interesting how we look westwards and towards abstract expressionism, but fail to completely recognise earlier indigenous abstraction by Jamini.
Experimental Studies
Jamini had two types of experimental studies. One type in the development of his own language and another type where he used to make inspired versions (mostly it seems in small format) of other artists such as Van Gogh, Picasso, Monet, Cezanne, Rembrandt, Byzantine Mosaic, Australian Bark3, etc. etc. As many artists do!
Portrait and landscapes by Jamini Roy inspired by Money, Van Gogh and Cezanne.
Tempera on card, Tempera on canvas, Oil on canvas.
It is important to put everything in context. Many artists, in fact, achieve commercial success by simply making their own inspired versions/techniques of other international artists.
Creating one’s own unique language is another matter, as it is not easy to achieve. This is where Jamini differentiated himself from the rest and why he is considered to be so avant-garde by most artists and curators alike. He has his own style (of modernism) that can be identified from a mile away!
This is an important point that needs to be understood.
References
1 - Collapsing Certainties, Reflections on the End of the History of Art by Partha Mitter ; Discussion with Partha Mitter
2 - The Art of Jamini Roy - A Documentary Film (DVD) | Jamini Roy
3 - Between Sydney and Calcutta: Jamini Roy, Oscar Edwards, and a Letter (1955)
4 - Banglar Broto by Shri Ababnindranath Thakur published by Vishwabidya Sangraha.
