i was attracted to this painting initially because i thought she was in the middle of a prayer. when i looked more closely i realized that she was not sitting on a prayer rug. however, her other-wordliness, even her hand movements, remind me of the islamic prayer, which is very meditative. in any case, serenity is the operative word here.
more about chughtai’s style of painting which might explain this figure:
Chughtai, who was born in Lahore, began with making woodblocks in Gumti Bazaar, trained in tiles at the Wazir Khan mosque and received formal education at the Mayo School of Art (now the National College of Art), Lahore. Then, he moved to Kolkata and worked there for several years. He began painting in the Bengal School style under the influence of Abandranath Tagore, a nephew of Rabindranath Tagore. Later, he studied etching at the School of Photo-engraving in London.
In the 1920s, he started using watercolours in the Bengal School style and specialised in watercolour wash, in which he integrated the traditional Mughal painting techniques with the Japanese wash method. He painted elegant, elongated stylised figures with luscious, half-closed oriental eyes having erotic overtones, in a linear iconography. This was supported by a decorative background based mostly on Saracenic architecture, created in mellow colours and composed in carefully balanced soothing harmonies in a soft wash. This resulted in an ethereal ambience. This peculiar mode of painting was best known as “Chughtai Style of Art”.
chughtai is considered to be one of the indian subcontinent’s greatest artists. salima hashmi: “he was part of the movement that started in the early part of the 20th century to establish an identity indigenous to the subcontinent. he rejected the hegemony of the british colonial aesthetic.”
