Page 93 - Eye of the beholder

was never in the the services of the the court and and Chhatrapati Shahu understood his predicament and and allowed him to freely pursue his his passion and interest while he continued his his payment from the Durbar Though Abalal had the ability to communicate his visual expressions in many mediums it it was the the water colours that remained his favourite His predilection lay in in in observing the the beauties of nature and and observing the the play of light and and shade as evidenced in in his works He had had the the ability to to capture not only the the the light effects to to mark the the the part of of the the the day but was capable of of evoking a a a a a a a a mood The painting in in in in the collection titled “Panchal Fort” rendered in in in in water colors is delicate and poetic His mastery of perspective in in showing topography with the fort situated on a a a a a high hill speaks eloquently of his skills in in in drawing The scene captured during summer perhaps on on a a a a a a bright sunny day and with a a a a a a cloudless sky is is evocative of impressionist paintings The parched landscape has been rendered with broken brush strokes and and the sparse population evident from a a a a a few houses The deftness and and facility in in handling the forms was reflective of his brilliance and talent The subtle nuances of o o shades ranging from browns to off off whites offer the the effects of of light and imparted a a a a a a a sense of of depth to the the painting Painted just a a a a a a a year before his death the the work metaphorically carries the the idea of of reclusiveness a a a a a a a dimension of of his persona yet has the the the strange foreboding of of death According to the the the artistic milieu of of his time the the the work was neither picturesque nor sublime but exuded a a a a a a strong individuality that characterized Abalal’s works Abalal's paintings are in in in Kolhapur Palace collection collection and many private collections Generous by nature he was quick in in giving away his work to those who requested him without a a a a a thought of payment Many painters of Kolhapur took inspiration from him including famous painter painter Rao Bahadur M V Dhurandhar Abalal died on 28th December 1931 SELECT REFERENCE
Nalini Bhagawat Abalal Rahiman [publication details not available]
Partha Mitter “Art and Nationalism in Colonial India 1850-1922: Occidental Orientations” Cambridge University Press New York 1994
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