Schools of Art in Different Places of India Establish by the British Empire

The approach of Britishers towards Indian art played an important role in the development of the process of the formal training of Indian artists so Britishers started to establish art schools in the major cities of India. One of the main reason of opening art schools in India was Britishers found that Indian artists had insufficiency in the scientific knowledge of art and were less able to create natural landscapes. Another reason was the demand for Indian luxury crafts by the British public in the last decades of the 19th century which became the major point of consideration for the initial policy makers.. The industrial arts were perceived by the British to be declining, for this mechanic institutes were opened for imparting useful knowledge to the native artisan. Initially the main focus of the art schools was laid on the development of the training skills of vocational and technical training. Following the recommendations of the select committee in 1835, schools of art were set up in various places of India. Art education was directly adopted from the European style. And this pattern and policy of education was waved for a long time. After sometime they wanted to start an Indian artistic crafts by imparting Western academic training to Indian artists so gradually the skilled drawing masters, draughtsmen and engravers were also recruited to these industrial schools.

Sir Charles Mallet established the first western school at Pune in c.1790 . The main purpose of the establishment of this school was to train the local painters in European painting so that they can assist the British artists. This school was run by James Wales but the school was closed after his death.

In the initial stage of the beginning of art schools educ...

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...cepted, particularly as exhibitions of the works from Japan and China was also organised. Lord Kitchener of the Fort William, Calcutta was the first president of the society. The two successive Governors of Bengal, Lord Carmichael and Lord Ronaldshay, industrialists and civilians like Norman Blount, Edward Thirtan were the main members, among the Indian members were A. N. Tagore, G. N. Tagore, Surendranath Tagore, artists Jamini Prakash Ganguly and art critic O. C. Ganguly. The main objective of the society was to mount exhibitions of Indian art and to hold discussions on art. In 1920, Indian Society of Oriental Art brought out an art journal under the editorship of O.C. Ganguly called “Rupam”. The Orientalists were still rooting for Indian painting and “Rupam” promoted works of art in the same way that “Prabasi” and “Modern Review” did in earlier decades.