Out of three large collections of Raja Ravi Varma’s paintings, those are in Vadodara, Thiruvananthapuram and Mysuru, Mysore Odeyar’s collection was executed in his last years. Princely Mysore AmbaVilasa palace patronised Raja Ravi Varma to produce these excellent mythological oil paintings for the (public) durbar hall wall. However, at present, this series is displayed in the Jayacamarajendra art gallery in Mys?ru. In the lieu of (t)his corpus of works a series of a canvas depicting mother goddess images executed by Silpa Siddhanti Siddhalinga Swami is visible.
Chandan Kashyap S K
Assistant Professor, Christ (Deemed to be) University, School of Architecture, Kengeri Campus, Bengaluru-560060. chandansmg@gmail.com
Volume 6, Number 2, 2022 I Full-Text PDF
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21659/cjad.62.v6n204
Abstract
Out of three large collections of Raja Ravi Varma’s paintings, those are in Vadodara, Thiruvananthapuram and Mysuru, Mysore Odeyar’s collection was executed in his last years. Princely Mysore AmbaVilasa palace patronised Raja Ravi Varma to produce these excellent mythological oil paintings for the (public) durbar hall wall. However, at present, this series is displayed in the Jayacamarajendra art gallery in Mys?ru. In the lieu of (t)his corpus of works a series of a canvas depicting mother goddess images executed by Silpa Siddhanti Siddhalinga Swami is visible. What was the reason for this re-placement? Did the architectural intervention cause this change and offered an opportunity for Silpa Siddhanti Siddhalinga Swami to contribute to the same wall space? How Silpa Siddhanti Siddhalinga Swami contributed to redefining the relationship of paintings with the (public) durbar hall space? Corpus of Raja Ravi Varma’s paintings and Silpa Siddhanti Siddhalinga Swami’s paintings are studied in the context of (public) durbar hall space. Letters and catalogues from archival sources pertinent to the commission (art)work in the context of (public) durbar hall wall and ceiling design competition are carefully scrutinized. The architectural aesthetic reason caused the relocation of Raja Ravi Varma’s paintings in the Jayacamarajendra art gallery, which facilitated an opportunity for Silpa Siddhanti Siddhalinga Swami to propound his redefinition of the relationship of (his series of mother goddess) paintings and the (public) durbar hall space, which he had already executed through the ceiling design.
Keywords: Raja Ravi Varma, Shilpa Siddhanti Siddhalinga Swamy, Mysore palace, iconographic images, Shilpa Shastras, Jayachamarajendra art gallery, patronisation of paintings, Mysore Wodeyars, Ambavilas durbar hall.
Amb? Vil?sa palace in Princely Mysore (henceforth A. V. palace) needed artworks, for which, with great honour, Raja Ravi Varma (henceforth R. Rv. Varma) was invited to accomplish this task. R. Rv. Varma received royal treatment in Mysore and through this royal assignment R. Rv. Varma produced a series of nine mythological paintings for A. V. Palace (see figures 1, 2, 3, 4). This body of works was later relocated to Jaganm?hana palace in Mysore (henceforth J. M. palace), which later got transformed into an art gallery that is now known as Jayac?mar?jendra art gallery (henceforth J. A. Gallery).[1] In the lieu of R. Rv. Varma’s paintings, a painting series depicting mother goddesses executed by Silpa Siddhanti Siddhalinga Swami (henceforth S. S. S. Swami) is visible (see figure 5). What was the reason for the relocation of R. Rv. Varma’s paintings? Did this relocation offer an opportunity to contribute further? How the relationship of paintings with the (public) durbar hall space was redefined? R. Rv. Varma’s mythological paintings series and S. S. S. Swami’s painting depicting mother goddesses are studied in the context of (public) durbar hall space (see figure 6). Letters and papers from archival sources in connection with the (public) durbar hall wall commission (art) work and ceiling design competition are carefully examined to know the answer(s). This research seeks to understand, firstly, how R. Rv. Varma was patronised by Kr??aRaja O?eyar IV for the mythological painting series for the (public) durbar hall wall, next, the reason for which R. Rv. Varma’s paintings were relocated in J.M. palace. Furthermore, to understand how S. S. S. Swami contributed to redefining the articulated relationship between the paintings and the (public) durbar hall space.
Figure: 1,“Rama Breaking the Sacred Bow of Siva before the Marriage with Sita” painted by Raja Ravi Varma, oil on canvas in the Amb? Vil?sa palace collection
Figure: 2, “Ravana Carrying Off Sita and Opposed by Jatayu” painted by Raja Ravi Varma, oil on canvas in the Jayac?mar?jendra art gallery collection
Figure: 3, “Swan Messenger” painted by Raja Ravi Varma, oil on canvas in the Jayac?mar?jendra art gallery collection
Figure: 4, painted by Raja Ravi Varma, oil on canvas in the Jayac?mar?jendra art gallery collection
Figure: 5, G?yatrid?vi (with Tri?aktid?v?s) painted by Silpa Siddhanti Siddhalinga Swami, oil on canvas in the Amb? Vil?sa palace collection
Patronisation of the artwork for Amba Vil?sa palace
Raja Ravi Varma the royal painter
Rv. Varma was a highly renowned artist with international repute and this can be witnessed by the fact that his canvases represented “Indian culture” in Chicago– the International Exhibition (1893) organised by the World’s Colombian Commission, this reminds the “participation of Sw?my Viv?k?nanda in the famous ‘Parliament of World’s Religion’” at Chicago in 1893. The certificates of the award (for R. Rv. Varma), now adorn the wall of the Sr? Citra Art Gallery in Thiruvananthapuram, are the evidence. His oleographs and their influence were immense, ranging from the French version of his oleographs in the west to the Japanese version in the east are observed.[2] When he was invited to Mysore to paint for the palace, he as well as the Mysore palace was conscious of the significance of his works. R. Rv. Varma, while conveying his thanks to Mah?Raja he expressed, “the kind patronage His Highness has(d) extended to me (R. Rv. Varma) and Indian art” as a noble deed.[3] This alludes to the significance of R. Rv. Varma and his works to the Indian art scenario.
The story of Odeyar’s patronization of the artist is narrated herewith by gleaning archival sources.[4] According to the letter written by R. Rv. Varma to the palace, he had visited Mysore twice, at first, he had visited the (old) palace in the late 1880s during C?maRaja O?eyar X’s period.[5] Next, he visited the “new palace” (under construction) in 1904 during Kr??aRaja O?eyar IV’s era. In between the two visits to Mysore R. Rv. Varma had executed a significant body of works for the Baroda royal family. He wrote a letter to the Mysore palace mentioning his accomplishment of the (mythological) series for “HH the Gaekwar of Baroda” (‘15 years ago) for which he had received Rs. 1500/- for each painting (smaller ones).[6] Hence, for the entire Mysore A. V. palace assignment, he quoted the amount of Rs. 25000/- and that was accepted.
Stately patronisation of the royal painter
After the approval of the A. V. palace commission project, R. Rv. Varma received royal treatment.[7] First of all, arrangements at Bangalore to receive him were done by Gurik?ra Be??a??a.[8] A government carriage (“Victoria”) was arranged to receive him and his people in Bangalore and another carriage (“Victoria”) was provided for their use. To prepare coffee and food a Brahmin cook was engaged. Later, when he arrived at Mysore, it is stated that he stayed at (Dew?n) “Sir K. Sheshadri Iyer’s House”. As per records, he came with his brother C. Raja Raja Varma, “five to six servants including cooks” (probably his son Raja R?ma Varma) also accompanied.[9] Since R. Rv. Varma and Raja Raja Varma were very keen to listen to “Mysore music”, a music concert was organised to entertain them. As a letter from Karikal To??i states V?ne ??sha??a and V?ne Subba??a for v?ne performance, Bi??ra Kr??aappa and V?sud?v?car for vocal performance and Gul?b J?ni for Hindusthani vocal music performance were planned.[10]
In the palace, the Engineer Mr Maconochie had accompanied R. Rv. Varma and shown the allocated spaces at the A. V. palace (public) durbar hall for his paintings, for which R. Rv. Varma and his brother immediately geared up to work.[11] In addition, it is stated that the Varma brothers were preparing watercolour character sketches in which they wished to include various types of Mysoreans, in this regard “classes of Palace servants” were expected to be arranged for modelling. After their stay in Mysore, some days later the royal artist guest with his men went back (to Kerala) and began the series. In 1905, he writes that he was about to finish the “pictures for the durbar hall” before the visit of H.R.H. the Prince of Wales to Mysore.[12]
Logistics of Raja Ravi Varma’s artworks
He further states that after the completion of the paintings, he packed them into two parcels and sent them by the goods train on 29 October 1905 to Bangalore.[13] Furthermore, in the same letter, three entries are recorded, one dated 06/12/1905 and another two dated 11/12/1905, stating that all of the paintings were received and stored in Bangalore carefully and awaited further communication from R.Rv. Varma. As per communication, he came to Mysore again in January 1906 and treated the canvases with his finishing touches. Under the supervision of Engineer Mr Maconochie, the paintings were received and handed over to the Mah?Raja .[14] As per the contract R. Rv. Varma was paid the amount of Rs 25000/- for the “series of nine paintings” that was regarded under the “general cost of constructing the Amba Vilasa palace”.[15] [16] [17]
As E. M. J. Venniyoor states (Venniyoor, 2006, 61) R. Rv. Varma, before going back (on 8 February 1906) witnessed his works displayed on the walls of J. M. palace Mysore (as a temporary display till the completion of the new A. V. palace (public) durbar hall construction work).[18] Next, within a short duration again he visited Mysore on the occasion of the Prince of Wales George V’s visit. According to a letter dated 21 January 1906 written by R. R. Varma he had received the invitation to attend the most elite gathering and “garden party” in Mysore on the occasion of Prince (George V) and Princess of Wales’s visit. As Erwin Neumayer states (Neumayer & Schelberger, 2005, 316)R. R. Varma was one of the VIPs for whom the newly imported cars were employed during George V’s visit to the Khe??a operation site.[19]
The connoisseurship of the patron
On 21 January 1906 R. R. Varma by addressing the Mysore palace writes that his series of paintings were ready for the “exhibition” during the visit of H.R.H. The Prince of Wales. In addition to this Venka?ar?maiah (Venkataramaiah, 1941, 416-418) maintains that on the same occasion, when Prince of Wales George V was about to visit the display, meanwhile, Kr??aRaja O?eyar IV is believed to have visited and politely pointed out a correction in the painting “Krishna’s Embassy to Duryodhana”.[20] In the painting, the hand of Kr??a holding Arjun?’s hand was found elongated extra. This “rectification” is believed to have been accepted by R. Rv. Varma as his “failure” and within “some days” said to have corrected that. This fascinating anecdote points out the “lack of proportion” as the well-known criticism idiom revolving around R. Rv. Varma’s works, A similar one in the context of his other painting is stated (Venniyoor, 2006, 23) to have been “rectified” by Rabindranath Tagore also; similarly, Kr??aRaja O?eyar IV also is attributed to have ‘rectified’.[21] Thereby, this “rectification” forms a criterion for the image construction of the “connoisseurship” spirit of the Mah?Raja .
Since Mysore Dasara Exhibition was a prestigious platform for art/ industry trade & commerce and cultural events in the State as well as the Nation. As maintained by Venka?ar?maiah (Venkataramaiah, 1941, 416-418) in the section “Chitralekhana Prema” R. Rv. Varma’s mythological series (painted for A.V. Palace) was exhibited in the Mysore Dasara exhibition in 1906. However, during Dasara, the artist was not present.[22] As Erwin Neumayer states (Neumayer & Schelberger, 2005, 316) R. Rv. Varma fell ill on 20 September.[23] He was diabetic and passed away on 2 October 1906 in Kilam?n?r Palace.[24] There was only five days gap between his death in Kilam?n?r in K?ra?a and the Vijayada?ami festival that had occurred on the 27 September (Mysore Dasara Calendar: Year-1906), this makes it impossible to believe the presence of the artist in Mysore Dasara Exhibition in 1906 September.[25]
Placement of Raja Ravi Varma’s “Puranic” paintings in the AmbaVil?s palace
Several letters confirm that the commission work of a series of nine paintings was intended to be fixed as the (interior) decoration of “the rear wall of the (public) durbar hall of the new Palace at Mysore”.[26] [27] As per the list of nine paintings of the “Puranic” (Pur?nic) theme, in which seven paintings with dimensions of 7’.10” X 5’ and two paintings of 5’.4” X 4’ were listed in the records under the section “(public) Durbar Hall”. These paintings, commissioned on his second visit to Mysore, constituted the body of his mythological painting series, which was executed for the O?eyar collection in Mysore, was stated as follows:
- “Rama Breaking the Sacred Bow of Siva before the Marriage with Sita”. (see figure 1)
- “Ravana Carrying Off Sita and Opposed by Jatayu”. (see figure 2)
- “Rama Threatens the Ocean God Varuna on His Not Making Way for Him”.
- “Indrajit Presenting to His Father Ravana the Trophies of His Conquest of Swarga (Heaven) (Mahabharat and Bhagavata)”. (see figure 4)
- “Krishna Releases His Imprisoned Parents After Killing Kamsa”.
- “Krishna’s Embassy to Duryodhana”.
- “Draupati Taunting Bhima for His Cowardice in Proposing Peace”. (Not on display in J. A. gallery)*
- “Bhishma’s Great Self Sacrifice”.
- “Kusha and Lava accompanied by Valmiki, and chanting the story of the Ramayana in the Yagashala”. (Not on display in J. A. gallery)*
* Rather, instead of these compositions “Swan Messenger” (see figure 3) and “Draupathi” are visible in the J. A. gallery.
Several letters confirm that these works were about to be displayed on the wall of A.V. palace (public) durbar hall. A letter from the Executive Engineer and another letter addressing R?makrishna R?o (palace controller) informs about the task of preparing “a brief history in Kanarese (Kanna?a language) inscribed in the panels below each painting” (basic information about the theme of the painting).[28],[29] Another letter shows how they were in search of an illustrated portfolio of R. Rv. Varma’s paintings to prepare the information panels.[30] A letter from S. Sr?niv?sa Iyer tells us that Mr Hardaker reported to the King about the plans and arrangements at the palace done for the Dasara celebrations of 1910, among them, the wall mounting of R. Rv. Varma’s paintings on the west wall of (public) durbar hall of A.V. palace were also listed. In addition to these letters, the absence of this corpus of artworks in Jaganm?hana Citra??le (J. A. gallery) becomes very crucial to support the argument further.[31] In this direction, another letter in 1913 with three estimations for the re-framing work for the images at Jaganm?hana Citra??le (J. A. gallery) lists a majority of paintings. In which Raja Rama Varma’s “Hari(s) Chandra & Taramati in the Street”, which was executed after the R. Rv. Varma’s “nine mythological paintings”, was listed but any of the Rv. Varma’s paintings were absent from the list.[32] This confirms that, by then, they were not in the Jaganm?hana Citra??le (J. A. gallery).
Re-placement of Raja Ravi Varma’s ‘Puranic’ paintings
Relocation of Raja Ravi Varma’s “Puranic” paintings
The A.V. palace (public) durbar hall western wall had high cultural-political significance, thus it demanded items of high cultural value for its “decoration”. R. Rv. Varma’s canvases fulfilled this demand. With all the efforts and patronisation, finally, as a grand project, R. Rv. Varma’s “Puranic” painting series of international fame was produced for the western wall of (public) durbar hall. However, at present, these works are not in the A.V. palace (except “Rama Breaking the Sacred Bow of Siva before the Marriage with Sita”, see figure 1), instead, they are displayed in the J. A. gallery. Wherein, this corpus of artworks was subjected to the art gallery context (rather than the palace (public) durbar hall).
Author Venkataramaiah (Venkataramaiah, 1941, 421-425) in the section “Mysurina Aramane” maintains that on the “Sejje Gode” (A.V. Palace, Western wall) the series of mythological paintings were mounted, “Samudrajagarvabhanga” (“Rama Threatens the Ocean God Varuna on His Not Making Way for Him”), “Sitaapaharana” (“Ravana Carrying Off Sita and Opposed by Jatayu”, see figure 2), “Bhishmapratigne” (“Bhishma’s Great Self Sacrifice”) and “Krishnadautya” (“Krishna’s Embassy to Duryodhana”) are mentioned among them.[33] According to the author, (the year of the book release is 1941) R. Rv. Varma’s painting series was part of the (public) durbar hall wall.
The most convincing reason for the relocation of the works is the fact that A.V. palace (public) durbar hall extension works and additional works began and the significance of old “Sejje Gode” diminished to a considerable extent. Its significance with the explicit visibility was dislocated, thus the wall seized to be the actual “backdrop” of the royal Mysore throne. A letter dated 7 January 1932 written by the palace architect (P. S. Subramanyam) addressing the chairman of the durbar hall committee explained this effect and stated as follows: [34] (see Annexure)
… if required by screening off the old Sajje arches and keeping the pillars only visible… if the pillars are to have an individuality of their own substantial enough to give an appearance all alone, they should be placed no more than ten feet apart considering the height of the pillars, which are about fifteen feet, thus causing the arches of the old Sajje almost hidden…
At present (public) durbar hall (extended) is a huge interior space with non-load bearing ornamental pillars. It has a huge wall that stretches horizontally from the south on the left side of the hall to the north on the right side. This wall has niche spaces, which were allocated for R. Rv. Varma’s paintings, each flanked with marble ornamental pilaster at both sides which culminates in a multi-foil arch at its top and these niches are separated by the big pilaster in between. Each pilaster that separates the niche space supports the multi-foil arch echoing the niche space and perpendicularly connects the pillar in the next row which runs parallel to the stretch of the wall, by echoing the same, further rows of pillars are connected. Each row of the pillars is aligned with the grid of the plan from south to north as well as west to east. (see figure 7) The pillars, as intended by the architect, almost block the view of the already existing niche spaces of the wall. From the view of the audience’s position(s), only the rows of pillars are visible rather than these niche spaces, thereby, dramatically reducing the significance of the “Sejje Gode” (western wall). In addition, the location of the royal Mysore throne has been pushed far ahead from this wall towards the east (see figure 6). This reduced significance caused the wall to be unsuitable for R. Rv. Varma’s paintings. Nevertheless, the walk-through space in front of the wall, with the proximity, offered some scope for appreciation of the paintings on the wall. Thus, it retained its cultural value to some extent, for which S. S. S. Swami executed a series of paintings depicting the images of mother goddesses. (see figure 5)
Figure: 7, Ambavil?s palace pillared durbar hall (after extension)
Re-placement of Raja Ravi Varma’s ‘Puranic’ paintings
Rv. Varma’s painting series got re-place in two different ways. On one hand, this body of artwork was relocated to the J.M. palace, and thus got re-place. On another hand, R. Rv. Varma is credited also for the works executed by S. S. S. Swami that re-place his works. In the first case, the 1943 catalogue of J. A. Gallery (Gallery of Indian Paintings Catalogue, 1943, viii, ix) mentions “Raja Ravi Varma Room” (as it is visible today) and locates it in the key plan on its first floor, which confirms the re-placement that happened by then in J. M. palace.[35] [36] Turning to the other case, even after his death (1906), not only his work maintained an intense impact on the local art scenario, but there was a strong imprint on people’s memory as well that R. Rv. Varma’s paintings adorn the (western) wall of (public) durbar hall in A.V. palace. Thereby, R. Rv. Varma’s authority is re-place. However, the specific compositions in the “Puranic” series produced by R. Rv. Varma is not re-evoked, instead, his name is associated with the paintings that were not produced by him and this can be witnessed in other instances as well, the popular perception of S. L. Hadankar’s “Glow of Hope” (“Woman With The Lamp” in J. A. gallery) is one such instance. A noteworthy fact is that some scholars too, in their perception, remember R. Rv. Varma for the painting series executed by S. S. S. Swami for the “Sejje Gode” of A.V. palace durbar hall wall. The description of (public) durbar hall found in Vikram Sampath’s “Splendours of Royal Mysore: The Untold Story of the Wodeyars” (Sampath, 2008, 698) is an example. Even among the mass audience, it is quite common to their memory that those paintings on the (public) durbar hall wall are unquestionably painted by R. Rv. Varma (actually done by S. S. S. Swami).[37]
Further opportunities provided by this relocation
??kta Iconic imageries: The feeling of divine “power” back-up
According to the myth preserved and circulated among some Mysore folks R. Rv. Varma’s life-size canvases (“series of nine mythological paintings”) at the backdrop of the King’s throne in the (public) durbar hall were sensed as “unethical” and “inappropriate for the space”.[38] R. Rv. Varma’s calibre was weighed metonymically with his oleographic image of “Vishvamithra Rejecting his Baby Shakuntala” (see figure 8), by this reference to the corpus of his nine mythological paintings, the unethical aspect of the irresponsibility of (generalised) man was pointed out. Which, was argued as dishonourable and not suitable for the (public) durbar hall space that was responsible for the ideal relationship between the king and his people.
S. S. Swami is said to have thoughtfully depicted D?vi/ ?akti images relevant to the Kingship.[39] Author Shivalingappa (Shivalingappa, 2013, 2-12) contextualises these images with the category of Citr?bh?sa mentioned in the Silpa??stras.[40] [41] S.S.S. Swami is considered an ingenious artist with a sacred aura. His execution of the painting series (iconic images) comprises Raja r?je?wari, A??abhuja K??ik?d?vi, Navadurgad?vi, Mahi?amardhini, Saraswathi, Mah?lakshmi, Bhuvan??warid?vi, G?yatrid?vi (with Tri?aktid?v?s) (see figure 5) as several forms of D?vi pertinent to the ??kta tradition “?ri Vidhya up?sana”. These are life-size oil on canvas paintings that re-place R. Rv. Varma’s paintings, for which, like his predecessors, S.S.S. Swami too followed iconographic aspects. However, he distinguished himself with his compliance to iconometry in his paintings (borrowed from Silpa ??stra).[42] The fact that any painted iconic image (oil on life-size canvas) following iconometric proportions in the academic realist style is hardly found, makes S.S.S. Swami’s iconic images unique.
S.S.S. Swami’s shared social and cultural platform of modernisation and, in reciprocation, his contributions to it are visible in his body of works. His contribution to the representation of divine beings by exploring modern materials and modes of representation is significant. The use of oil colours on canvas and European academic realism, especially, R. Rv. Varma’s trajectory that had modernised the iconic representation are some of the major shared aspects. While visualising the divinities, he followed the tradition of R. Rv. Varma and other conventions of representations (Tanjore and Mysore‘s traditional paintings are among those traditions) and painted a typical blouse and sari. According to T.A. Gopinath Rao Dharma??str?s (Rao, 1914, 23) prefer an un-stitched cloth to be represented.[43] [44] Furthermore, As Gnanananda says (Gnanananda, 2020) Silpa??stras prefer the drapery as “ala?k?r?” (enhancement of divine beauty) similar to the jewellery used as embellishment, rather than concealment.[45] [46] Hoysa?a period sculptures are excellent examples of the representation of minimal “Ka?ibandh” or “mun?u”, and it is in agreement with ?gamic canons (see figure 9).[47] These (eight) canvases stand for their sacred value that provides a different spiritual experience to the faithful. The printed images of these paintings, today, are in circulation among devotees and are used for religious events as well as household worship.
Raja Ravi Varma’s oleogrphic print depicting Vi?v?mitra, M?naka and newborn baby S?kuntala
Housel sculpture Cennak??ava temple B?l?r
Celestial blessings: The ceiling design competition
The huge ceiling covers the hall sitting arrangement, by extending (east to west) from the front of the facade to the middle of the hall, as well as stretching from the left side (south) to the right side (north) of the hall. As per myth, it is believed that the ceiling had the images painted by R. Rv. Varma (“obscene” realistic female nudes), with specific reference to the image of “someone strips off a lady nude” (see figure 4).[48] [49] S. S. S. Swami and his team were believed to have over-painted with the images of Indra Sabha (see figure 10), Families of Trinity, Ash?adigp?lak?s, Navagrah?s, Dv?da?a r??i and most importantly C?mun??swari were considered to be appropriate for the palace ambience as Silpa ??str?s prescribes them as part of the iconographic program of the temple ceilings.
Apart from this mythical anecdote (which is crucial to understand unwritten ambience), archival records inform us that the portion of the “Rajpu???a dome” was newly constructed, towards the east of the A.V. palace (public) durbar hall.[50] In conjunction with this, a “Ceiling Design Competition” was organized by the durbar hall committee.[51] S. S. S. Swami’s participation in this competition was decisive for his professional path ahead. Regarding this competition, proceedings of the durbar hall committee meeting inform us about the decisive role of the palace architect with the design comprising the detailed drawing and model mapping of the allocation of ceiling space divisions with the location of coves, domes and panels.[52] Based on this ceiling design, the competition was planned to decorate the allocated ceiling spaces, for which entries were recorded at the national level.
The competition was tough, wherein, Percy Brown’s design was juried as “the next in order of merit (compared with S. S. S. Swami)” and “the highest consolation prize of Rs. 750/-” totalling 750/- was awarded for which he was deeply upset. He bypassed the durbar hall committee and contacted British government officer (MahaRaja ’s private secretary) Sir Charles Todhunter as well as the Dew?n and raised his concern, several archival papers record this incident.[53] [54] Percy Brown demanded the second prize, and then within the committee, there aroused differences of opinion. The Chairman (M.G. Rangaiah) had no objection to the second prize, but the Member (Mr Lakshminarasappa) argued strongly for the cancellation of any prize to him, in addition, abiding by the “rule 13” of the competition an “error was discovered” by the Secretary (N.V. Bapat). Then the committee decided to retrieve the prize amount from him so that his drawings could be returned to him, but he did not reply to this. Finally, as per the suggestion of the member Mr Lakshminarasappa, he was informed to retain the prize amount and he will get his drawing back.[55] Furthermore, it is stated that other contestants agreed to receive consolation prizes, and with their consent, their drawings were retained by the committee. A list of consolation prizes was also furnished as follows:
- Mr P.C. Mitter Calcutta 400/-
- “ J.K. Mehta Bombay 300/-
- “ Ramakant Bombay 200/-
- “ Chitale Madras 200/-
- “ Kalabhai Karson Bombay 200/-
- “ Lakshmanakrishna Rao Mysore 100/-
- “ S. Nagaraju Mysore 100/-
- “ S. Subramanyaraju Mysore 100/-
- “ A.R. Sheriff Mysore 100/-
The “Proceedings of the durbar Hall Committee meeting” informs that S.S.S. Swami was awarded the second prize, for which, lack of “proper cross-sections and details of panels etc” was stated as the reason, and thus considered an incomplete design and the second prize was found sufficient.[56] However, proceedings dated 30-01-1935 inform us that the first prize was granted to S.S.S. Swami based on King Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV‘s recommendation to the committee.[57] His design appealed as entirely “original” and was found suitable to the context. The committee declared “Mr K.S. Siddalingaswamy’s (S.S.S. Swami) drawing” as the best out of the thirteen drawings received. None of the entries was considered for the second and third prizes, thus getting cancelled.
Ambavil?sa palace durbar hall ceiling paintings designed by Silpa Siddhanti Siddhalinga Swami
(Silpa) ??str?s as the area of competence
S.S.S. Swami emerged successful with this ceiling design project that was patronised by Krishnaraja O?eyar IV, later during Jayachamarajendra Odeyar’s era he grew more influential and achieved the status of “Raja Guru” and mentored the MahaRaja in his spiritual journey. He headed the Sansk?ta Vidhvan Man?a?i formed in A.V. palace and produced a huge body of translations/ compilations of V?dic texts, which included “Rig V?da and twenty-four Pur???s” with Kanna?a translation.[58] This corpus of literature is a product of his scholarship and the influence he had achieved. He had established “?aiva Silpa Brahmar?i Gurukula” in the mid-1940s and composed “?ilp?dar?aha”- a canonical text for the school (workshop) to equip several sculptors with the skill set and knowledge pertinent to dev?laya Silpa (traditional sculpture). K?maK?m??wari temple at Mysore is evidence of his spirit and energy to revive the tradition in the (then) modern context. Sculptures sheltered in this temple are of exceptional aesthetic quality and iconographic/ iconometric value and indicate the calibre of the master and his guild (students).
S. S. Swami’s fame was far-reaching so he was approached by scholar Prasanna Kumar Acharya, for whom he prepared twenty-two iconometric drawings for the book (Acharya, 1994, xviii) “Architecture of Manasara” in 1934.[59] In this context while acknowledging him Acharya provides a lengthy list of places that he had visited across India to get iconometric drawings done, wherein, some are mentioned to have “miserably failed” after some trials. Bombay, Baroda, Delhi, Lahore, Lucknow, Allahabad, Ajmer, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Calcutta, Shillong, Cuttack, Puri, Madras, and Bangalore are those places named. Acharya praises S. S. S. Swami as the only one who accomplished the task. Apart from this, it worth noticing is that before this K. Venkatappa and Nandalal Bose had already contributed some iconometric drawings to the book “Some Notes on Indian Artistic Anatomy” by Abanindranath Tagore (Tagor, (n.d).) (approximately in 1914).[60] However, Venkatappa’s professional journey was in a different direction, whereas, for S.S.S. Swami’s art practice Silpa??str?s and ?ganic cannons formed the major premise.[61]
In conclusion, even though the “puranic” series was executed by R. Rv. Varma, which was a grand project, its relocation to J. M. palace happened due to architectural aesthetic reasons. This relocation provided further scope to S.S.S. Swami to contribute to the palace art scenario with the painting series of the goddesses’ images that occupied the place allocated for R. Rv. Varma’s canvases. R. Rv. Varma’s corpus of artworks was re-placed in J. A. Gallery. S.S.S. Swami had successfully convinced the Mah?Raja that his images are more apt (for the (public) durbar hall space). However, in the popular collective memory R. Rv. Varma’s name and authority are re-placed in their “original place”, in other words, the relocation of his works never mattered, rather, in the popular collective memory R. Rv. Varma is credited for the artworks accomplished by S.S.S. Swami as well. S.S.S. Swami contributed with unique oil-painted images by implementing iconometric proportions (of Silpa??str?s) into the figures modelled as per academic realism based on the R. Rv. Varman trajectory of painting. S. S. S. Swami’s artistic talent and his enormous cultural capital in terms of Silpa??stras and V?dic/ ?gamic Knowledge enabled him to be successful. In addition, his organisational capability made him influential, thus he overshadowed his contemporaries in terms of the palace art activities. Eventually, his contribution to the redefinition of the painting- (public) durbar hall space relationship based on Silpa??str?s and ?gamic cannons is noteworthy.
Acknowledgement
I am very grateful to the Divisional State Archives in Mysuru for their support. I convey a ton of thanks to BMS School of Architecture in Yelahanka and School of Architecture in Christ University in Kengeri for the encouragement. I am thankful to Dr. G. Gnanananda and Mr. Manjunath for sharing their knowledge. I thank, last but not least, Radhika my wife (family) who supported throughout the article writing.
Image references
Figure 1. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/84/Ravi_Varma-Rama-breaking-bow.jpg
Figure 2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raja_Ravi_Varma#/media/File:Raja_Ravi_Varma,_Jatayu_vadha,_1906.jpg
Figure 3. https://uploads0.wikiart.org/images/raja-ravi-varma/swan-messenger.jpg
Figure 4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indrajit#/media/File:Victory_of_Meghanada_by_RRV.jpg
Figure 5. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/????_???????_????.jpg
Figure 6. Drawn by the author
Figure 7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mysore_Palace#/media/File:Grand_Interiors_of_Mysore_Palace.jpg
Figure 8. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Menaka#/media/File:Raja_Ravi_Varma_-_Mahabharata_-_Birth_of_Shakuntala.jpg
Figure 9. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d5/Sthambha_buttalika_sculpture_in_Chennakesava_temple_at_Belur.jpg
Figure 10. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mysore_Palace#/media/File:Roof_design.jpg
Notes
[1] Jaganm?hana palace was constructed in 1861 by King Krishnraja Wodeyar III and it was used as an alternative residential place for some time apart from A. V. palace
[2] Ganesh V. Shivaswamy, Raja Ravi Varma, his imprint in time: Celebrating 125 years of the print legacy, a slide talk presentation on Friday, (Bengaluru, National Gallery of Modern Art, 12 July 2019 at 6.00 pm)
[3] A letter from R.R. Varma to Palace dated 12 November 1904, Palace Maramath, 7-1904 box 3, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[4] Mysore Wodeyars’ family ruled the Mys?ru/ Mysore area since pre- Vijayanagara era till Indian independence.
[5] A letter from R.R. Varma to Palace dated 10 July 1904 during his stay at Mysore, Palace Maramath, 7-1904 box 3, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[6] Dated 10 November 1904, Palace Maramath, 7-1904 box 3, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[7] Similar hospitality was provided to him at several places across India, Va??dara was one among them.
[8] A letter from Superintendent (Gurikara Bettanna) to (Assistant Private Secretary to H.H. The Maharaja of Mysore) P. Raghavendra Rao dated 7 July 1904, Palace Maramath, 7-1904 box 3, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[9] A letter by R.R.Varma to Mysore Palace dated 29 June 1904, Palace Maramath, 7-1904 box 3, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[10] Dated 16 July 1904, Palace Maramath, 7-1904 box 3, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[11] A letter from R.R.Varma to Maharaja of Mysore dated 13 July 1904, Palace Maramath, 7-1904 box 3, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[12] A letter by R.R.Varma to Mysore Palace dated 8 November 1905, Palace Maramath, 7-1904 box 3, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[13] Name Bangalore represents till the renaming as Bengaluru in 1 November 2014
[14] A letter from (Engineer) Mr. Maconochie letter to R.R.Varma dated 19 June 1906, Palace Maramath, 7-1904 box 3, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[15] A letter dated 8 November 1905 (Palace Maramath, 7-1904 box 3, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore) from R.R. Varma states due to health hazards R.R. Varma was unable to paint two out of ‘series of nine paintings’; ‘Kusha and Lava accompanied by Valmiki and chanting the story of the Ramayana in the Yagashala’ and ‘Draupati Taunting Bhima for His Cowardice in Proposing Peace’are not visible in the display either at J.A. Gallery or A.V. Palace.
[16] Letter dated 12 November 1904 (Palace Maramath, 7-1904 box 3, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore) addressing Mr Krishna Murti
[17] A letter from (Palace Engineer) Mr. Maconochie to Krishna Murthy dated 19 February 1906, Palace Maramath, 7-1904 box 3, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[18] E.M.J. Venniyoor, Raja Ravi Varma (Trivandrum: Director, Museums and Zoos and Art Gallery, 2006), p. 61.
[19] Erwin Neumayer and Christine. Schelberger, Raja Ravi Varma: Portrait of an Artist: The Diary of C. Raja Raja Varma (New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2005), p. 316.
[20] C. K. Venkataramaiah, Aalida Mahaswamiyavaru: Divangataraada Sreemanmaharaaja Sreemanaalvadi Sree Krishnaraajendra Wodeyaravara Jeevana Charitre (Banglore, Banglore Press, 1941), pp. 416-418.
[21] E.M.J. Venniyoor, Raja Ravi Varma (Trivandrum: Director, Museums and Zoos and Art Gallery, 2006), p. 23.
[22] C. K. Venkataramaiah, Aalida Mahaswamiyavaru, pp. 416-418.
[23] Erwin Neumayer and Christine. Schelberger, Raja Ravi Varma: Portrait of an Artist, p. 316.
[24] Indian Telegraphs addressing Palace Private Secretary sent by (R .R. Varma’s son) Rama Varma and received in Mysore on 04-10-1906 informs R .R. Varma’s demise on second of October 1906 Palace Maramath, 7-1904 box 3, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[25] ‘Mysore Dasara Calendar: Year-1906’. Drikpanchang, https://www.drikpanchang.com/dasara/mysore/mysore-dasara-calendar.html?year=1906 (accessed 08 December 2020)
[26] From Private Secretary to the Maharaja of Mysore to R.R.Varma dated 12 November 1904 another letter to Krishna Murti dated 12 November 1904 are some of the examples (Palace Maramath, 7-1904 box 3, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore).
[27] Letter dated 12 November 1904 addressing Mr Krishna Murti, Palace Maramath, 7-1904 box 3, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[28] A letter addressing Ramakrishna Rao Garu (Palace Controller) dated 10 of July 1908, Palace Maramath, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[29] A letter from The Executive Engineer, Palace Division to The Officer in charge, Palace Establishments, Mysore, dated 13 of August 1907, Palace Maramath, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[30] Another gentle reminder to Ramakrishna Rao Garu (dated 28 of July 1908), Palace Maramath, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[31] A letter from S. Sreenivasa Iyer For Executive Engineer, Palace Division to Maharaja of Mysore approved by P. Raghavendra Rao, Huzur Secretary, Mysore (22-09-1910), Palace Maramath, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[32] A letter with three estimates from (Picture Frame Workers) 1) H.G. Lingannah & son 2) H.G.Siddaligappah & Co. to M.P. Subramanyaraj Urs dated 02/04/1913, Palace Maramath, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[33] C. K. Venkataramaiah, Aalida Mahaswamiyavaru, pp. 421-425.
[34] Palace Maramath, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[35] By 1940 MahaRaja Kr??aRaja O?eyar IV expired and immediately after a month Maharaja Jayacamarajendra Odeyar’stenure begins.
[36] Gallery of Indian Paintings Catalogue, (Mysore, Jaganmohan Palace Chitrasala, 1943), pp. viii, ix
[37] Vikram Sampath, Splendours of Royal Mysore: The Untold Story of the Wodeyars (New Delhi, Rupa. Co., 2008), p. 698.
[38] people belonging to traditional artists community of old Mysore link
[39] personification of energy
[40] Prescribes the wall murals (bhitticitra) at temples.
[41] L. Shivalingappa, Shakapurusha Siddhalingaswamigalu (Bengaluru, Karnataka Shilpakala Academy. 2013), pp. 2-12.
[42] Potential area for further research.
[43] “Kucapa??i”
[44] T. Gopinath Rao, Elements of Hindu Iconography, Vol-I, Part-I, (Madras: The Law Printing House, 1914), p. 23.
[45] G. Gnanananda, Concept of Vastra in Shilpa Shastras. (Interviewed by Chandan Kashyap S K), (Bengaluru, 2020, 08 16)
[46] This is paradoxically parallel to the Platonic paradigm of Ideal beauty, believes that any natural form in the creation is considered as beautiful, art follows this beautiful form, hence, in representation cloth is avoided from hiding this beauty.
[47] A small piece of rectangular unstitched cloth that covered the lower abdomen area.
[48] As told by people belonging to the traditional sculptors’ community of old Mysore link.
[49] points at “Indrajit Presenting to His Father Ravana the Trophies of His Conquest of Swarga (Heaven) (Mahabharat and Bhagavata)”, which is an oil painting on canvas displayed in J. A. gallery
[50] Constructed in 1930s and it is important to note that R.R. Varma died in 1906. Hence, this is an aspect of ‘de-chronologisation’ that is part of the myth construction.
[51] Handled this extension work activities at A.V. Palace public durbar hall.
[52] Proceedings of the Durbar Hall Committee meeting held on Thursday the 8 June 1933, Palace Maramath, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[53] Proceedings of the Durbar Hall committee meeting held on Friday the 11 May 1934, Palace Maramath, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[54] Proceedings of the meeting of the Durbar Hall committee held on 17 June 1935, Palace Maramath, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[55] This was agreed on 13-07-1935, Palace Maramath, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[56] Proceedings of the Durbar Hall committee meeting held on Friday the 11 May 1934, Palace Maramath, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[57] Proceedings of the Durbar Hall Committee meeting held on Wednesday 30-01-1935, Palace Maramath, Divisional Archives Office, Mysore.
[58] Which is available in CD (Rig V?da and 24 Pur?n?s) in Bengaluru Rig V?da with Kanna?a translation is published by Kannada Pustaka Pradhikar of Kannada Bhavana in Bengaluru.
[59] Prasanna Kumar Acharya, Architecture of Manasara Vol-IV (New Delhi, Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd., 1994), p. xviii.
[60] Abanindranath Tagore, Some Notes On Indian Artistic Anatomy. (n.d).
[61] K. Venkatappa and S.S.S. Swamy were contemporaries and work for the Amba Vials Palace, Mysore till Venkatappa left Mysore in 1940s and established his own studio in Bengaluru.
References
Acharya, P. K. (1994). Architecture of Manasara Vol-IV . New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd. xviii
(1943). Gallery of Indian Paintings Catalogue. Mysore: Jaganmohan Palace Chitrasala. viii, ix
Gnanananda, G. (2020, 08 16). Concept of Vastra in Shilpa Shastras. (C. Kashyap S. K., Interviewer) Bengaluru.
Mysore Dasara Calendar: Year-1906. (n.d.). Retrieved 12 08, 2020, from Drikpanchang: https://www.drikpanchang.com/dasara/mysore/mysore-dasara-calendar.html?year=1906
Neumayer, E., & Schelberger, C. (2005). Raja Ravi Varma: Portrait of an Artist: The Diary of C. Raja Raja Varma. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. 316
Rao, T. G. (1914). Elements of Hindu Iconography, Vol-I, Part-I . Madras: The Law Printing House. 23
Sampath, V. (2008). Splendours of Royal Mysore: The Untold Story of the Wodeyars. New Delhi: Rupa. Co. 698
Shivalingappa, L. (2013). Shakapurusha Siddhalingaswamigalu. Bengaluru: Karnataka Shilpakala Academy. 2-12
Tagore, A. ((n.d).). Some Notes On Indian Artistic Anatomy.
Venkataramaiah, C. K. (1941). Aalida Mahaswamiyavaru: Divangataraada Sreemanmaharaaja Sreemanaalvadi Sree Krishnaraajendra Wodeyaravara Jeevana Charitre. Bangalore: Bangalore Press. 416-418, 421-425
Venniyoor, E. (2006). Raja Ravi Varma. Trivandrum: Director, Museums and Zoos and Art Gallery. 61, 23
Appendices
Pages written by the Palace Architect P. S. Subramanyam discuss the implementation of “arch treatment” and the architectural aesthetics involved in it.
Chandan Kashyap S K is currently working as an assistant professor in the School of Architecture of Christ University in Kengeri campus in Bengaluru. Research interests comprise the art and cultural aspects of Karnataka/ India/ South Asia. In this pursuit several research articles are authored and presented, Indian Art History Congress, Karnataka History Congress, CAVA in Mysuru and National Gallery of Modern Art in Bengaluru among those places. Some articles are published in journals, Chitrolekha Journal on Art and Design and Kala- the Journal of Indian Art History Congress are among those. A lifetime member of the Indian Art History Congress and recipient of Dr. Veena Shekar Award for Art History by Sameeksha Art, Research, Media, in Bengaluru.