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Gaganendranath Tagore (17 September 1867 – 14 February 1938) was an Bengali painter and
Gaganendranath received no formal education but trained under the watercolourist Harinarayan Bandopadhyay. In 1907, along with his brother Abanindranath, he founded the Indian Society of Oriental Art which later published the influential journal ''Rupam''. Between 1906 and 1910, the artist studied and assimilated Japanese brush techniques and the influence of Far Eastern art into his own work, as demonstrated by his illustrations for Rabindranath Tagore's autobiography ''Jeevansmriti'' (1912). He went on to develop his own approach in his ''Chaitanya'' and ''Pilgrim'' series. Gaganendranath eventually abandoned the revivalism of the Bengal School and took up caricature. The ''Modern Review'' published many of his cartoons in 1917. From 1917 onwards, his satirical lithographs appeared in a series of books, including ''Play of Opposites'', ''Realm of the Absurd'' and ''Reform Screams''.
Between 1920 and 1925, Gaganendranath pioneered experiments in modernist painting. Partha Mitter describes him as "the only Indian painter before the 1940s who made use of the language and syntax of Cubism in his painting". From 1925 onwards, the artist developed a complex post-cubist style.
Gaganendranath also took a keen interest in theatre, and wrote a children's book in the manner of Lewis Carroll, ''Bhodor Bahadur'' ('Otter the Great').
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of artworks on National Gallery of Modern Art website {{DEFAULTSORT:Tagore, Gaganendranath Indian cartoonists 1867 births 1938 deaths Artists from Kolkata Indian painters Indian artists Indian male artists Indian male painters Gaganendranath Bengali Hindus Bengali male artists 19th-century Indian painters 19th-century Indian artists 20th-century Indian painters 20th-century Indian artists 20th-century Indian writers 20th-century Indian male writers 20th-century Bengalis 19th-century Bengalis People from West Bengal People from Kolkata district
cartoonist
A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary an ...
of the Bengal school
The Bengal School of Art, commonly referred as Bengal School, was an art movement and a style of Indian painting that originated in Bengal, primarily Kolkata and Shantiniketan, and flourished throughout the Indian subcontinent, during the ...
. Along with his brother Abanindranath Tagore, he was counted as one of the earliest modern art
Modern art includes artistic work produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the styles and philosophies of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the tradi ...
ists in India.
Life and career
Gaganendranath Tagore was born atJorasanko
Jorasanko is a neighbourhood of North Kolkata, in Kolkata district
Kolkata district (formerly known as Calcutta district) is a district in the Indian state of West Bengal, headquartered in Kolkata.
History
Long before the British came to ...
into a family whose creativity defined Bengal's cultural life. Gaganendranath was the eldest son of Gunendranath Tagore, grandson of Girindranath Tagore and a great-grandson of Prince Dwarkanath Tagore
Dwarkanath Tagore ( bn, দ্বারকানাথ ঠাকুর, ''Darokanath Ţhakur''; 1794–1846) was one of the first Indian industrialists to form an enterprise with British partners. He was the son of Ramlochon Tagore, the founder ...
. His brother Abanindranath was a pioneer and leading exponent of the Bengal School of Art. He was a nephew of the poet Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
and the paternal great-grandfather of actress Sharmila Tagore
Sharmila Tagore (also known as Begum Ayesha Sultana; born 8 December 1944) is a retired Indian actress, primarily known for her work in Hindi and Bengali cinema, Tagore is the recipient of two National Film Awards, a Filmfare Award, and the ...
.
Gaganendranath received no formal education but trained under the watercolourist Harinarayan Bandopadhyay. In 1907, along with his brother Abanindranath, he founded the Indian Society of Oriental Art which later published the influential journal ''Rupam''. Between 1906 and 1910, the artist studied and assimilated Japanese brush techniques and the influence of Far Eastern art into his own work, as demonstrated by his illustrations for Rabindranath Tagore's autobiography ''Jeevansmriti'' (1912). He went on to develop his own approach in his ''Chaitanya'' and ''Pilgrim'' series. Gaganendranath eventually abandoned the revivalism of the Bengal School and took up caricature. The ''Modern Review'' published many of his cartoons in 1917. From 1917 onwards, his satirical lithographs appeared in a series of books, including ''Play of Opposites'', ''Realm of the Absurd'' and ''Reform Screams''.
Between 1920 and 1925, Gaganendranath pioneered experiments in modernist painting. Partha Mitter describes him as "the only Indian painter before the 1940s who made use of the language and syntax of Cubism in his painting". From 1925 onwards, the artist developed a complex post-cubist style.
Gaganendranath also took a keen interest in theatre, and wrote a children's book in the manner of Lewis Carroll, ''Bhodor Bahadur'' ('Otter the Great').
Works
* ''Adbhut Lok: realm of the absurd'', 1917, Calcutta: Vichitra Press, a portfolio of thirteen satirical pictures. * ''Naba Hullod: Reform screams; a pictorial review at the close of the year 1921'', 1921, Calcutta: Thacker, Spink & Co. * ''Birupa bajra (Play of Opposites)'', 1930, Calcutta: Preonath Das Gupta for the Indian Publishing House. * ''Bhondor bahadur'', Kolkata: Shishu Sahitya Samsad, 1998, classic children's bookSee also
*Tagore family
The Tagore family (also spelled as ''Thakur''), with over three hundred years of history,Deb, Chitra, pp 64–65. has been one of the leading families of Calcutta, India, and is regarded as one of the key influencers during the Bengali Renaissa ...
References
Further reading
* * Partha Mitter, ''The Triumph of Modernism: India’s artists and the avant-garde 1922-1947'', London, 2007 * (Memoir by Gaganedranath's daughter, in Bengali)External links
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in the collection of
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and ...
Virtual tour
of artworks on National Gallery of Modern Art website {{DEFAULTSORT:Tagore, Gaganendranath Indian cartoonists 1867 births 1938 deaths Artists from Kolkata Indian painters Indian artists Indian male artists Indian male painters Gaganendranath Bengali Hindus Bengali male artists 19th-century Indian painters 19th-century Indian artists 20th-century Indian painters 20th-century Indian artists 20th-century Indian writers 20th-century Indian male writers 20th-century Bengalis 19th-century Bengalis People from West Bengal People from Kolkata district