India’s Forgotten Brushstrokes Return: DAG's Landmark Company Paintings Exhibition Unveils Colonial-Era Masterpieces

Source: DAG via BBC - Patna's Sewak Ram painted this watercolour of prayers at a Muharram festival, 1820

How Indian Artists Once Commissioned by the East India Company Are Being Recognized as Pioneers of Indian Modernism

New Delhi | May 26, 2025 — In a powerful reimagining of India's colonial art history, Delhi Art Gallery (DAG) has unveiled what is being hailed as the largest-ever exhibition of Company Paintings in India. Titled “A Treasury of Life: Indian Company Paintings, c. 1790 to 1835,” the show features over 200 rarely-seen artworks by Indian artists who were commissioned by British officials of the East India Company.

Far from being relics of colonial domination, these works are now being reframed as the early expressions of Indian modernism—created during a moment of profound transformation when court-trained artists moved beyond royal patronage and temple commissions to serve foreign clientele.

What Are Company Paintings?

“Company Paintings” is a term coined to describe artworks produced by Indian artists at the behest of British officers and traders of the East India Company between the late 18th and early 19th centuries. These paintings capture a stunning array of subjects—from natural history and architectural marvels to traditional Indian customs and professions.

According to Giles Tillotson, Senior Vice President at DAG and curator of the exhibition, these paintings were not just souvenirs. “They reflect an attempt by Europeans to visually catalogue and understand an unfamiliar world,” he says. “Everything from the clothes people wore to the temples they worshipped in became material for artistic inquiry.”

Botanical Beauty and Mughal Grandeur

Among the most significant collections in the exhibition are botanical watercolours believed to originate from Murshidabad or Maidapur—once centers of British influence in West Bengal. These paintings, some of which were part of the Louisa Parlby Album, depict flora growing in gardens and fields during the late 1700s.

“These are not exotic plants meant to amuse Europeans,” notes Harvard scholar Nicolas Roth. “They are deeply connected to Indian agrarian life and symbolism, even as British patrons viewed them as collectibles.”

In the absence of photography, Indian monuments also became a major focus. Artists painted iconic Mughal sites like the Taj Mahal, Agra Fort, Buland Darwaza, and Humayun’s Tomb. Among them was Sita Ram, an Indian artist who accompanied Francis Rawdon Hastings, Governor-General of India (1813–1823), on extensive travels. His paintings capture the landscapes and monuments of northern India with incredible accuracy and detail.

Cultural Chronicles and Everyday Professions

Company paintings also offered a window into Indian social life—what British viewers saw as “exotic traditions” became subjects for meticulous documentation. One painting in the exhibit shows a vibrant temple procession in Thirunallar, Karaikal, where Brahmins, dancers, and musicians surround a statue of Shiva on an ornate chariot.

Another section, inspired by the regional style of Tanjore, features images of snake charmers, sepoys, toddy tappers, and nautch girls—complete with tools of their trades. These visual ethnographies served both aesthetic and anthropological interests for European audiences.

According to Kanupriya Sharma of DAG, “These images were designed to satisfy British curiosity while documenting the diversity of Indian society for European collectors.”

French Footprints and Pondicherry’s Unknown Artists

While most narratives around Company Paintings center on British patrons, the exhibition also highlights French influence in South India. As early as 1727, French officers in Pondicherry were commissioning Indian artists. A standout collection includes 48 uniform paintings featuring daily life along the Coromandel Coast.

One painting shows ten men—described as nageurs (swimmers)—navigating rough waters in a traditional chilingue boat. These skilled rowers were essential to ferry goods and passengers between shorelines and offshore ships, especially in areas like Madras and Pondicherry, which lacked natural harbors.

A Turning Point for Indian Art

For Ashish Anand, CEO of DAG, these works signal something much larger. “This exhibition marks the true beginning of Indian modernism,” he asserts. “It was the first time Indian artists stepped outside royal and religious spaces to engage with new, secular patrons.”

These patrons were not looking for divine stories or royal portraits—they wanted scientific studies, ethnographic records, and landscape documentation. And Indian artists rose to the occasion, creating new artistic idioms that merged Mughal detailing with European perspective and realism.

Why This Exhibition Matters Now

In today’s cultural discourse, reclaiming indigenous narratives is more urgent than ever. As India looks to decolonize its art history, this exhibition stands as a corrective to decades of neglect.

“These paintings were dismissed for years as colonial kitsch,” says Tillotson. “But they are sophisticated, hybrid creations—collaborations that reveal as much about the Indian artists as they do about their European patrons.”

As India continues to rediscover and celebrate its diverse artistic heritage, “A Treasury of Life” offers more than a visual feast—it restores dignity and recognition to hundreds of unnamed Indian painters whose brushstrokes quietly documented a pivotal chapter in the nation’s past.

Exhibition Details:
📍 Venue: DAG, Delhi
🗓️ Dates: Ongoing until further notice
🎨 Entry: Open to public