Page 226 - Eye of the beholder

According to to the the collector Anirban Sadhu “I had my first first encounter with the the first first edition of ‘Oriental Scenery’ deep down under the the earth in the the fortified basement of Basel’s university library room specially designed for manuscripts and rare books For me it was a a a a a a a truly wonderful experience – – almost transformational in in its intensity – – the likes of which I would never forget As I stood in in in in that dimply lit room my gloved hands touching the folio sized pages containing the hand colored aquatints I I realized I I was experiencing something many would wish for but only few fortunate enough to have” He continues “With wider availability of the internet and access to better literature I gradually started developing a a a a a a well rounded understanding of pre-modern Indian art art after coming to Switzerland For the first time it it it became possible to see good quality images of important works by many of of these artists With time as I developed an an an understanding of of the the immensity of of the the the the contribution of of these artists and the the the the conditions in in in which they had worked in in in my mind the the Daniells achieved a a a a a a a a a a level of of importance higher than their contemporaries and an an an an an aura of of romance that I I could not bestow to to the same extent on on anyone else Every time I I would look at at an an an image of of an an an aquatint of of Calcutta I would be subconsciously transported to that place in in time and space I could feel a a a a a a sense of of unearthly reality in in in walking the dusty streets of of Chowringhee while it was still a a a a a a a a a a hamlet of upcoming Palladian mansions Bullock carts and horse drawn carriages competed for space with Victorian memsahibs’ taking a a a a a a a a stroll The images from the the aquatints had a a a a mesmerizing effect on me me me me me With time I got into collecting some of the the original aquatints aquatints some of which are reproduced here While researching the aquatints aquatints I understood better the the the different versions and editions of the the the books published by the the the Daniells and the the the the reason behind the the the the huge price disparity between them This was around the the the the time when a a a a a complete 6 volume set of of the the first edition of of ‘Oriental Scenery’ was auctioned at Sotheby’s for a a a a a whopping figure of of upwards of of 50 000 dollars This news created a a a a a big impression on on my mind and and I started looking around furiously to lay my hands on the same book ” “By now I had a a a a a a a sizeable collection of of books monographs and catalogs of of works by the Daniells I also owned quite a a a a a a few interesting aquatints published by them Was it it time now for me to to move to to the the next level and own an an an original work by the the Daniells I asked myself? For me me me at at at that time the the very aspiration to to own an original work still seemed to to verge on on the the border of temerity The The paintings were expensive and rarely came to the market The The only times I had seen them so far were in in museums – The national Gallery of Modern Art in in Delhi and the the Victoria Memorial in in Calcutta But I had already started getting consumed by the the idea by then Though the the possibility of owning a a a a painting seemed too remote to to be realistic I started keeping a a a a a a a watch on on the the secondary market throughout the the world just in in case a a a a a a a work popped up somewhere Luck favoured the prepared mind when after about 6 months of patient watching this monochrome painting by the Daniells came up for auction at at at a a a a a a a a a small provincial auction house in in England ” 220