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Lot Essay
What distinguishes Abdur Rahman Chughtai’s work is his exceptional skill as a draughtsman. In his paintings, which allowed him a larger surface than his etchings and drawings, he indulged in exceptionally detailed compositions with subtle, flowing lines. Described as “inaudible poetry made visible” (J. Bautze, Interaction of Cultures: Indian and Western Painting, 1780-1910, Virginia, 1998, p. 137), Chughtai’s attractive watercolors are based on subjects ranging from Buddhist stories and Hindu epics to Islamic history, illustrative paintings for the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam and portraits based on Ghalib’s poetry.
The delicacy of the line contouring his female figures and the richly detailed rendering of their ornaments and the drapery of their flowing outfits illustrate Chughtai’s conscious resolution to revive the Persian style miniature painting, with close attention to Mughal aesthetics. The unique style he developed has been called ‘Persian-Mughal mannerism’ (I.U. Hassan, Painting in Pakistan, Lahore, 1991, p. 37) and bears the influence of the Pre-Raphaelite paintings the artist encountered in London and other cities during his travels in Europe as well.
The delicacy of the line contouring his female figures and the richly detailed rendering of their ornaments and the drapery of their flowing outfits illustrate Chughtai’s conscious resolution to revive the Persian style miniature painting, with close attention to Mughal aesthetics. The unique style he developed has been called ‘Persian-Mughal mannerism’ (I.U. Hassan, Painting in Pakistan, Lahore, 1991, p. 37) and bears the influence of the Pre-Raphaelite paintings the artist encountered in London and other cities during his travels in Europe as well.