The Portrait of a Lady

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Rendered in oil in the tradition of Raja Ravi Varma on a canvas of 50 X 36 inch size this painting portrays a young lady sitting by a sea-beach. The painting is composed of a wholesome landscape besides the portrayed figure. The landscape is quite multifarious in perspectives, especially in depth and height, but despite the figure of the lady is neither lost nor merged in it. It on the contrary seems to float on its surface and reach the viewing eye to reciprocate it. Figure's realism and life-like vigour is unique. The portrayal is consonant not only to Indian light but also to her culture and life style. She has India's life way and culture deep rooted in her being, in her costume and customs, build and beauty, light and dreams of eyes, feelings on face and thought within. Her long hair, glass bangles, 'bindi' on forehead, traditional jewellery, bare feet, gracefully held saree and blouse with a laced sleeve and its high neck opening speak of traditional India. The real strength of Raja Ravi Varma's art style lies in this. He sought from Europe his realism, perspectives, dynamism, light and shade effects and vastness of canvas, that is, he borrowed from Europe his paintings' outer frame but imbued in it the essential India as its life and spirit.

Everything in the portrait is so simple but as much graceful and unique. The round face has been brilliantly balanced with prominent forehead, deep large eyes, sharp nose with a small ring with beads, receding chin supported by a patch of shaded light and shapely neck and fine lips. There is hardly anything extraordinary in her face, yet it is fascinatingly beautiful. Her enamelled ear-pendant of gold with frills of pearls and beads not only enhances the beauty of the face but also effectively conciliates the deep black of her hair with her deep pink complexion. Her beaded necklaces, both made of coral beads and of light blue stone, alike conciliate the deep blue of her velvet blouse with the shaded complexion of her neck. Her long hair binds her entire form and greatly adds to her beauty. The evening of the setting sun has coloured with darkness not only the ocean, sky, trees or terrain but has also dyed her maroon saree, each of its fold, with tints of darkness and has shaded her complexion to look different from what it actually was. With grace added to it this realistic portrait appears to be so above the reality.

This description by Prof. P.C. Jain. Prof. Jain specializes on the aesthetics of literature and is the author of numerous books on Indian art and culture.

Oil painting technique – India centric

Oil painting is the most interesting technique in art. Unlike other paintings or art forms, oil painting is a process in which colored pigments are painted on the canvas with a drying oil medium as a binder. This medium helps colors blend beautifully to create layers and also makes them appear rich and dense. Several varieties of oil are used in this painting such as sunflower oil, linseed oil, etc., and depending on the quality of the oil, a particular consistency of the paint is developed. With the use of an oil medium, the painting gets a natural sheen on the surface which appears extremely attractive. India is famous for its old tradition of making oil paintings. This art form was brought by Europeans in the 18th century and is now practiced by almost all well-known artists. Nirmal, a small tribal town in the state of Telangana is the center of traditional oil paintings in India where the local people practice it with dedication. Most Indian artists still use the traditional technique of oil painting.

Canvas of the required size is prepared

The artists use either a wood panel or canvas made from linen or cotton. Sometimes the canvas is stretched onto the wooden frame to form a solid base, or cardboard may be used. The canvas is coated with a layer of white paint or chalk mixed with animal glue. This mixture is then smoothed and dried to form a uniform, textured surface. The wooden panel is more expensive and heavier but its solidity is an advantage in making detailed paintings with ease.

Sketch is drawn on the canvas

Now the artist starts to draw the subject of the painting on the canvas using the actual charcoal or a charcoal pencil. Sometimes, he may sketch with thinned paint as well.

Oil paint is applied using paint brushes or palette knives

Now that the rough sketch is prepared, the artist is now ready to paint. Oil paint, a special paint that contains particles of pigments suspended in a drying oil (usually linseed oil), is again mixed with oil to make it thinner for applying it on the canvas. Proper consistency of the paint is maintained to avoid its breakage. The most important rule for the application of oil paint is “Fat over lean” in which the first layer of paint is thin and later, thicker layers are applied. This means that each additional layer of paint contains more oil. This results in getting a stable paint film. Traditionally, paint was applied using paint brushes but now the artists also use palette knives to create crisp strokes. To paint using this technique, the edge of the palette knife is used to create textured strokes that appear different from that of a paintbrush. Sometimes, oil paints are blended simply using fingers for getting the desired gradation.

Smaller oil paintings, with very fine detail, are relatively easier to paint than larger ones. The most attractive feature of these paintings is the natural shiny appearance that is obtained on the surface because of the use of oil paint. The blending of colors looks extremely realistic and this is the reason why oil paintings are loved by everyone throughout the world.