Tanjavur Painting of the Maratha Period

Tanjavur Painting Of The Maratha Period

by Jaya Appasamy


This book is a general account of the painting of the period when Tanjavur was under Maratha rule. It was a time of turmoil and change, notable for the strands of many different cultures which met and stimulated art in this small territory. Numerous forms arose, some traditional, othres showing the assimilation of contemporary ideas It was an exotic heterogeneous flowering reflecting the demands of different kinds of patrons and the versatility, skill and open-mindedness of the artists.

The painting of this period is dealt with showing its connections to South Indian Art in general and also its responses to the impact of Western ideas. It is a tribute to the people  of the South and their traditions that even in a period of compatative instability, wars,famine and confusion there was still a need and a desire for objects of art. The era is characteristically eclectic but its painting mirrors the faith, the values and the requirements of the people.

So far the visual arts of this period have not received much attention. It is hoped that this study will lead one to see that art was an important facet of southern cultire as a whole.

Abour The Author :-


The author, Smt. Jaya Appasamy is an artist and critic. Born in  Madras in 1918 she studied art in Santiniketan, in China, where she was a Government of India scholar, and in Oberlin College, USA, where she took her master's degree.

Smt. Appasamy taught for a number of years in the College of Art, New Delhi. She was Editor, Lalit Kala Akademi, till she retired in 1976. Since then she has been occupied with research and painting.

Smt. Jaya Appasamy has written extensively on the contemporary and ancient art of India. Her work includes the introductory texts of the monographs on Ram Kinkar and Sailoz Mookherjea. Her books, Abanindranath Tagore and the Art of His Times and An Introduction to Modern to be authoritative works on their subjects.