Artists display sketches of Bengal famine, bygone era

In an exhibition titled "Three Masters", three master artists have showcased their works highlighting the tragic Bengal famine (1943), rural and pastoral Bengal and political turbulence of the bygone era.

The works of veteran artists Chittoprasad Bhattacharya, Haren Das and Somenath Hore - who come from the celebrated Bengal School, an influential art movement and a style of Indian painting that originated in Bengal in the early 20th century - chronicle their urge for experimentation with early art forms.

Caricatures and sketches of the poor dying in the Bengal famine, woodcuts, engravings and lithographs - all are on display representing many facets of Bengal.

"You can't ignore grim realities of the past and it is important to document these works to showcase them to the younger generation and keep the movement alive," Vijaylakshmi Dogra, curator, told IANS.

"They were all contemporary artists and sketched everyday life of Bengal and focussed on Bengal famine," she added.

If Bhattacharya's caricatures and sketches of the poor dying in the Bengal famine worked like modern day reportage, and shook the middle class and the British officials out of their apathy, Das has managed to offer a glimpse of a Bengal that no longer exists.

"Das introduced line engraving and etching into the art curriculum and most of the works, especially his woodcuts and engravings, captured rural, pastoral Bengal. Despite using restraint and economy, he has managed to offer a glimpse of a Bengal that no longer exists," said Dogra.

Similarly, Hore experimented with etching, intaglio and lithographs and dramatised it with a spot of red.

"The white on white prints reflected the political turbulence of the times and his figuration has always reflected the anguished human body," pointed out Dogra.

The exhibition can be viewed at Art Indus gallery in Santushti Shopping Complex, Chanakyapuri.

It is on till June 28.