Collector's museum
CHANDRAMANI SINGH
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Jaya Appasamy drew attention to the art of the Company period in India.
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I FIRST met Jayadi — Jaya Appasamy — at Bharat Kala Bhavan, Banaras Hindu University Museum, in the winter of 1969. She was collecting material for her research. As I showed her the collection, we discussed early 20th century paintings.
Another interest we shared was artefacts. Collecting became a passion in her later years. She was fond of artefacts especially of Company period and instead of photographing an object, she purchased it if it was within her budget. In those days, company period artefacts were not very expensive. So, she bought drawings, portraits and folios of manuscripts. Over the years, she accumulated a sizeable collection, which comprises mainly paintings and early Indian prints.
Jaya Appasamy described this period as "the bridge between the ancient styles and the more modern international styles that came after it".
Transitional phase
This transitional phase in the history of Indian art is unique, for it was perhaps not considered a vital phase. The artists of this period seemed to be freely adapting the western, particularly the English, approach of imitation of nature and incorporating ideas of near and aerial perspective, elements of human anatomy and producing likenesses of the individual. Life of kings and nobles especially highlight Indian history.
Artists in the 18th and 19th centuries experimented with different mediums. Among the new bases that became fashionable were ivory, glass and mica. Painting on ivory was a form of miniature in watercolour, which became popular in the last quarter of the 18th century. Mainly used for portraits, this medium reached a certain excellence by mid-19th century.
Jaya's collection includes a number of interesting works on ivory, the most notable being a crowned Ganesha, riding his mouse. Judith and Holofernes is an example of work on ivory done for Christian patrons.
Painting on glass was a popular style in which the subject was generally religious and occasionally secular or decorative. Jaya made glass painting a part of Indian art scenario. She collected a sizeable number of works done all over the country starting from Murshidabad in the east to Bhuj in the west; Rajasthan in the north to Thanjavur in the south.
Painting on mica was done mostly for western patrons, who wanted gifts for their friends and relatives back home. Painting on mica sheet was done from reverse following the technique of glass painting. They were often made in sets popularly known as firqa sets — small illustrations showing traditions and customs of Indian people or professionals or servants engaged in household chores. Jaya was among the pioneers who wrote on and collected woodcut prints and lithographs.
Printmaking began in Europe sometime in the early 15th century as engraving first on wood and then on metal plates. Jesuit missionaries introduced it in India in the 16th century. Gradually Calcutta became a centre for printing and duplicating art works. Though printing was done in Mumbai, duplicating art works became popular after Raja Ravi Verma set up a press first at Lonavala and later at Ghatkopar, both near Mumbai.
Representative collection
Jaya discovered prints from various parts of the country — Punjab, Rajasthan, Mysore, Bengal and many others. She formed a representative collection, wrote on them opening a new vista in Indian art history. As a Government of India scholar in Beijing from 1 947-50, she studied Chinese art and specialised in the painting techniques of the Sung dynasty besides learning ancient Chinese techniques from masters.
As a collector, Jaya realised the need for a collectors' museum. Her own collection was to be the nucleus. In 1984, the Rasaja Foundation, a cultural charitable society devoted to the promotion of Indian Art and Culture, was formed. Jaya bequeathed her collection to the Foundation, together with her house in New Delhi. Soon after, Jaya died on September 3, 1984.
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