Page 61 - Eye of the beholder

STaGeS in in The cleaninG
of The riVerScaPe PainTinG
Before After
Cleaning restoration and framing is is to to to a a a a a a a a a a painting as make up is is to to to a a a a a a a a a a woman If properly done the results in in in in in both instances are spectacular When I I originally bought this painting in in in in in June 2014 it was on an impulse I I had been looking for a a a a a a work by JP for for sometime and having been unable to find one for for some some time time was getting rather desperate On second thoughts I I was almost sure that I I had overpaid for a a a a a a a a a painting in in in poor state of preservation The canvas had been relined in in in in India shortly before it came to my possession In In Basel the painting subsequently went through some cleaning and restoration by the old restorer near Petersplatz who had cleaned the the the Early Bengal Durga This intervention stabilized the the the paint layer and took away some of the the the old varnish and grime The craquelere was was clearly visible but the the painting was was otherwise OK I love craquelere craquelere For For me craquelere craquelere gives a a a a a a a sense of originality and righteousness to a a a a a a a painting For For paintings that have lived in in in India where the the alternation of seasons is pronounced craquelere endorses the the genuineness of the work because it is almost impossible to fake J P P Gangooly executed many a a a a a a a a riverscapes The river river Padma is is is a a a a a a a a recurring theme in in in in his his paintings This however does not seem to a a a a scene from the the the the gangetic plains Going by the the the the looks of the the the the pine trees and the the the the mountains beyond this seems to be be a a a a a a a scene from the lower Himalayas (probably around Mussourie) where Gangooly often spent his holidays and is is known to have executed a a a a a a few other mountain views 55