The Bull Nandi in the courtyard of the Golden Temple, Benares
- Object:
- Place of origin:
- Date:
- Artist/Maker:
William Simpson, born 1823 - died 1899 (maker)
- Materials and Techniques:
Pencil and watercolour on paper
- Museum number:
- Gallery location:
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William Simpson (1823 - 1899) was commissioned to go to India by his employers, Day and Sons, the London lithography firm. Having established his reputation by documenting the Crimean war in 1854, he was instructed to sketch well-known sites in and around Delhi associated with the heavy fighting of 1857.
Simpson arrived in Calcutta (Kolkata) in 1859 and travelled widely. His rapid pencil drawings formed the preparatory studies for his finished watercolours which were done after his return to London in 1862. His fond memories of India, as noted in his journal, resulted in these highly coloured, evocative and romantic interpretations of the Indian landscape.
Simpson, a largely self-taught artist from a poor family in Scotland, had hoped to achieve fame on the publication of his paintings in a lavishly illustrated volume. Unfortunately, financial problems led to the poorly printed India Ancient and Modern containing only fifty images. Simpson called it the ‘big disaster’ of his life.
The V&A has the single most important collection of watercolours made during Simpson's first expedition to India.
Physical description
View of a sculpture of the bull Nandi in a courtyard with temple buildings in the background and a few people nearby.
Place of Origin
Varanasi, India (made)
Date
1864 (made)
Artist/maker
William Simpson, born 1823 - died 1899 (maker)
Materials and Techniques
Pencil and watercolour on paper
Marks and inscriptions
The Bull Nanda, Golden Temple. Benares. Wm. Simpson 1866.
Dimensions
Width: 36.5 cm, Height: 29.5 cm
Object history note
Historical significance: William Simpson (1823 - 1899)
William Simpson was commissioned to go to India by his employers, Day and Sons, the London lithography firm. Having established his reputation by documenting the Crimean war in 1854, he was instructed to sketch well-known sites in and around Delhi associated with the heavy fighting of 1857.
Simpson arrived in Calcutta (Kolkata) in 1859 and travelled widely. His rapid pencil drawings formed the preparatory studies for his finished watercolours which were done after his return to London in 1862. His fond memories of India, as noted in his journal, resulted in these highly coloured, evocative and romantic interpretations of the Indian landscape.
Simpson, a largely self-taught artist from a poor family in Scotland, had hoped to achieve fame on the publication of his paintings in a lavishly illustrated volume. Unfortunately, financial problems led to the poorly printed India Ancient and Modern containing only fifty images. Simpson called it the ‘big disaster’ of his life.
The V&A has the single most important collection of watercolours made during Simpson's first expedition to India.
Descriptive line
Painting of the Bull Nandi in the courtyard of the Golden Temple by William Simpson, Benares, 1864
Exhibition History
Indian Life and Landscape by Western Artists. Paintings and Drawings from the V&A 1790-1927. (Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (CSMVS), Mumbai 08/12/2008-22/02/2009)
Production Note
Although the painting dates from 1864, the scene depicted was originally sketched in December 1860.
Materials
Paper; Pencil; Watercolour
Techniques
Painting
Subjects depicted
Sculpture; Temple; Bulls; Nandi
Categories
Paintings; Hinduism
Collection code
SSEA
