Collage, semi-abstract composition, by Benode Behari Mukherjee, paper on card, Bengal, ca. 1970

The collage is made of brown and other coloured paper stuck to buff card, with some pencil drawing. Several human figures appear among other shapes.

Given by Mr. Anthony Stokes, 1983.

Given by Mr Anthony Stokes. RF: 83/1915

Binode Behari Mukherjee (1904 - 1980) was one of the pioneers and leading exponents of the Indian Modernist movement. A painter and muralist, Mukherjee, studied at Santiniketan under the tutelage of Bengal School artist Nandalal Bose. He developed a style that drew from a variety of artistic forms, including western modernism, Far Eastern calligraphy and wash technique, Indian Rajput and Mughal paintings and the Ajanta and Bagh frescoes.

Whilst at Santiniketan, Mukherjee was one of the first students to use oil paint and work in a multitude of media including woodcuts, murals, etching and collage. He learnt calligraphy and traditional Far Eastern wash techniques from visiting Japanese artists. In 1936 he travelled to Japan and was influenced by the abstract compositions of painter Tawaraya Sotatsu. His interest in Western modernism is evidenced by his flexible adoption of a Cubist non-figurative syntax such as multi-perspectival compositions and faceting of planes. In addition, Mukherjee was inspired by the Ajanta and Bagh frescoes which triggered his interest in mural techniques. ‘Saint Singers of Medieval India’, commissioned by the Visva-Bharati University in 1947 is one such experiment.

Mukherjee taught at Kala Bhavan (1925-1949), the art faculty of Visva Bharati University. In 1947, he joined as a curator the Nepal Government Museum in Kathmandu and from 1951-52, he taught at the Banasthalo Vidyapith School in Rajasthan. In 1958, completely blind, he returned to Kala Bhavan and became its principal.

Benode Behari Mukherjee (1904 - 1980) was one of the pioneers and leading exponents of the Indian Modernist movement. A painter and muralist, Mukherjee, studied at Santiniketan under the tutelage of Bengal School artist Nandalal Bose. He developed a style that drew from a variety of artistic forms, including western modernism, Far Eastern calligraphy and wash technique, Indian Rajput and Mughal paintings and the Ajanta and Bagh frescoes.

Towards the end of his career, the artist suffered from poor eyesight. This print shows his experimentation with form, rhythm and space. This collage is made of brown and other coloured paper stuck to buff card, with some pencil drawing, depicts several human figures and abstract shapes. On the reverse there are some sketches of human figures and other shapes in black and felt tip pen.

IS.101-1983