A new exhibition at the DAG gallery in New Delhi, titled Destination India: Foreign Artists in India 1857-1947, showcases over 90 works by 40 artists from 12 countries. The exhibition focuses on the art of foreign artists who visited India during the colonial rule and depicts the everyday life of common people, street scenes, and cultural aspects of the country.
The exhibition features works by renowned artists like Hiroshi Yoshida from Japan, Eric Kips from Germany, and Hugo Vilfred Pedersen from Denmark, among others. These artists brought a different aesthetic sensibility to their representations of India, focusing on the living India rather than just grand monuments and landscapes.
One of the highlights of the exhibition is a watercolor painting titled A Fruit Vendor, India by British artist Carlton Alfred Smith, depicting two women selling fruits and vegetables. Other works in the exhibition include paintings by Dutch artist Marius Bauer, English artist Charles William Bartlett, Australian artist Mortimer Menpes, and Italian painter Olinto Ghilardi, showcasing various aspects of everyday life in India.
The exhibition, curated by art historian and author Giles Tillotson, aims to fill a missing chapter in the history of Indian art by showcasing the works of foreign artists during the colonial rule. These artists brought a modern sensibility to their paintings, focusing on street scenes and common people, rather than grand monuments, providing a unique perspective on India’s cultural and social landscape.
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