Ali the fisherman
Painting
December 1866 (made)
December 1866 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
John Griffiths was born in 1837. He studied at the Royal College of Art and then worked under Godfrey Sykes on the decorative work for the South Kensington Museum. One of his fellow assistants was John Lockwood Kipling, who became a life-long friend, and he was godfather to Kipling's son, Rudyard. The two of them were persuaded to go out to India on a three-year assignment, and in 1865 they sailed for Bombay, where they worked together for ten years at the Bombay School of Art. Griffiths undertook many commissions, including work on the Victoria Terminus and the High Court. After his decade in Bombay, Griffiths was appointed Principal of the Mayo School of Art and Curator of the Museum in Lahore, now in Pakistan, where, on an earlier visit, he had painted this portrait of one of the local inhabitants. After his retirement in 1895, Griffiths lived firstly in Wales and then near Sherbourne in Dorset. He died in 1918.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Ali the fisherman (assigned by artist) |
| Materials and techniques | Drawn and painted in pencil and watercolour, heightened with white, on tinted paper |
| Brief description | Painting, Ali the fisherman, painted and drawn in watercolour and pencil on paper, John Griffiths, Karachi, December 1866 |
| Physical description | Painting, pencil and watercolour on tinted paper, entitled 'Ali the Fisherman' on object. The subject has a voluminous white beard and is seated on the ground scowling at the viewer, with his knees drawn up. He wears a blue turban and lower garment with a white top. |
| Dimensions |
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| Content description | 'Ali the Fisherman'; the subject has a voluminous white beard and is seated on the ground scowling at the viewer, with his knees drawn up. He wears a blue turban and lower garment with a white top. |
| Marks and inscriptions | J.J. Fonçeca Madras January 1872. |
| Credit line | Purchased from A. Knapp Esq, Orchard House, Ramsden Crays, Essex |
| Object history | Made by John Griffiths, Principal of the Government School of Art, Bombay. Purchased from A. Knapp Esq, Orchard House, Ramsden Crays, Essex. This acquisition information reflects that found in the Museum records (Asia Department registers and/or Central Inventory) as part of a 2023 provenance research project. RP 1910- 4698 M |
| Production | made - Christmas 1866 |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | John Griffiths was born in 1837. He studied at the Royal College of Art and then worked under Godfrey Sykes on the decorative work for the South Kensington Museum. One of his fellow assistants was John Lockwood Kipling, who became a life-long friend, and he was godfather to Kipling's son, Rudyard. The two of them were persuaded to go out to India on a three-year assignment, and in 1865 they sailed for Bombay, where they worked together for ten years at the Bombay School of Art. Griffiths undertook many commissions, including work on the Victoria Terminus and the High Court. After his decade in Bombay, Griffiths was appointed Principal of the Mayo School of Art and Curator of the Museum in Lahore, now in Pakistan, where, on an earlier visit, he had painted this portrait of one of the local inhabitants. After his retirement in 1895, Griffiths lived firstly in Wales and then near Sherbourne in Dorset. He died in 1918. |
| Bibliographic reference | Rohatgi P. and Parlett G., assisted by Imray S. and Godrej P. Indian Life and Landscape by Western Artists: Paintings and Drawings from the Victoria and Albert Museum, 17th to the early 20th century. Published by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, Mumbai, in association with V&A, London, 2008. ISBN 81-901020-9-5.
p. 326, p. 43 |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | IM.346-1910 |
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| Record created | September 21, 2004 |
| Record URL |
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