Friday, May 22, 2015

Women of Algiers and Women of India by Ghulam Ali Khan

As is well known Pablo Picasso's 'Women of Algiers' has become the most expensive painting to sell at auction.


Wikipedia informs: "Les Femmes d'Alger (Women of Algiers) is a series of 15 paintings and numerous drawings by the Spanish cubist artist Pablo Picasso. The series was inspired by Eugène Delacroix's 1834 painting Women of Algiers in their Apartment (French: Femmes d'Alger dans leur appartement)..."

Here is  Delacroix's 1834 painting:

current location: Louvre, Paris

courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

As soon as I saw both the paintings mentioned above, I was reminded of this Indian painting:


Artist: Ghulam Ali Khan, 1st quarter of 19th century

Current Location: The San Diego Museum of Art 

I also saw this picture in  B. N Goswamy's 'The Spirit of Indian Painting: Close Encounters with 101 Great Works 1100-1900'  and the lady, fourth from the left, produced below, is simply bewitching. 

No one  from the current crop of leading ladies of Hindi cinema comes close to her in poise and style.

 courtesy: B. N. Goswamy

 On the whole, I like Mr. Khan's painting more than the most expensive painting to sell at auction.
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