The Formulation Of Iconography
In The Paintings Of Raja Ravi Varma

Aastha Duggal

The iconography in Raja Ravi Varma’s paintings is a paradigm of tactile illusionism, bringing to life the characters of mythological and religious tales, giving them an identity which the people could associate the narrative with.

In the nineteenth century, India witnessed an evolutionary transformation in the domain of painting traditions and techniques. Widely known as one of the protagonists of Modern Indian Art, Raja Ravi Varma was as a painter who inculcated the western approach in his depictions of Indian myth and lore. Varma was born to an aristocratic family in the princely state of Travancore, India. He was a self-taught artist who was patronized by Ayilyam Thirunal, the then Maharaja of Travancore, and began formal training there after. Varma’s style of painting was based on pictorial realism with the influence of European Academic Art. Varma received extensive recognition after he won an award for an exhibition of his paintings at Vienna in 1873. He was awarded three gold medals at the World’s Columbian Exposition held in Chicago in 1893 where his work was exhibited. His art had a powerful role in honing feelings of nationality and belongingness among the people. Eventually, he purchased a printing press to produce oleograph copies of his paintings which adorned the middle-class homes of India. His
interpretation of religious texts not only gave a face to the Gods and Goddesses, but also a chance to the people to carry these illustrations into their homes for creating personal shrines.