Not currently on display at the V&A

Painting

1984 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Shyamal Dutta Roy was born in Ranchi, Bihar in 1934. He graduated from the Government College of Art and Craft in 1955. Dutta Roy worked as art teacher at Jagadbhandu Institution in Calcutta. He was a founder member of the Society of Contemporary Artists. Shyamal Dutta Roy lives and works in Calcutta.

In his work, Dutta Roy often focuses on the melancholy of urban Calcutta, its poorest residents, the broken walls, crumbling plaster, cobweb-filled rooms and empty houses.
In this watercolour, we see a woman, half-length, feeding a swarm of pigeons from her out-stretched hand. The woman has her eyes shut, wears a colourful sari and has several bangles on her armwrists. Beyond more birds circle in the air. A screen of large buildings blocks the view.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Painted in watercolour on cardboard with small bits of newspaper on the external perimeter of card
Brief description
Painting, woman with birds, by Shyamal Dutta Ray, watercolour over pencil on paper, Kolkata, 1984
Physical description
Painting, in watercolour on card with small bits of newspaper on the external perimeter of card, in the foreground a woman, half-length, feeding a swarm of pigeons from her out-stretched hand. Beyond, more birds circle in the air. A screen of large buildings blocks the view. The woman has her eyes shut, wears a colourful sari and has several bangles on her arms.
Dimensions
  • Height: 53cm
  • Width: 66cm
Content description
A woman, half-length, feeding a swarm of pigeons from her out-stretched hand. Beyond, more birds circle in the air. A screen of large buildings blocks the view. The woman has her eyes shut, wears a colourful sari and has several bangles on her arms.
Marks and inscriptions
Signed and dated on right hand corner.
Object history
Purchased from Mrs Sarah Abraham. Rp 84/106. Exhibited at the Sao Paulo Biennale, 1979.
Historical context
Shyamal Dutta Roy was born in Ranchi, Bihar in 1934. He graduated from the Government College of Art and Craft in 1955. Dutta Roy worked as art teacher at Jagadbhandu Institution in Calcutta. He was a founder member of the Society of Contemporary Artists. Shyamal Dutta Roy lives and works in Calcutta.
Subjects depicted
Summary
Shyamal Dutta Roy was born in Ranchi, Bihar in 1934. He graduated from the Government College of Art and Craft in 1955. Dutta Roy worked as art teacher at Jagadbhandu Institution in Calcutta. He was a founder member of the Society of Contemporary Artists. Shyamal Dutta Roy lives and works in Calcutta.

In his work, Dutta Roy often focuses on the melancholy of urban Calcutta, its poorest residents, the broken walls, crumbling plaster, cobweb-filled rooms and empty houses.
In this watercolour, we see a woman, half-length, feeding a swarm of pigeons from her out-stretched hand. The woman has her eyes shut, wears a colourful sari and has several bangles on her armwrists. Beyond more birds circle in the air. A screen of large buildings blocks the view.
Bibliographic references
  • P. Ray, LKC 23, 1977, p.39
  • Indian Painting Today, Jehangir Art Gallery, Bombay, 1981
Collection
Accession number
IS.86-1985

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Record createdJune 25, 2009
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