Sri Chitra Art Gallery

Over 1,100 paintings from Travancore royal collections, Indian art colleges, and foreign artists are on show at an art gallery in Thiruvananthapuram. Situated in the northern grounds of the Napier Museum at the Thiruvananthapuram Museum Compound, Sree Chitra Art Gallery offers a distinctive collection of both traditional and modern art. The gallery has about 1100 paintings, many of which are classic works of art.
The Kilimanoor Royal Family of Kerala and the Royal House of Travancore donated a sizable collection. In 1935, Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma, the final Maharaja of the Indian princely state of Travancore in modern-day Kerala, inaugurated the gallery. Dr. J. H. Cousins was initially recruited as an art advisor to the government by Chithira Thirunal, who supported the arts. By assembling an outstanding collection, cousins were instrumental in the gallery's founding.
The varied collection features paintings from the Mughal, Rajput, Bengal, Rajasthani, and Tanjore schools of art in addition to the Travancore paintings. Additionally, it features an oriental collection of prehistoric Indian mural paintings, Tibetan Thangka, Chinese, Japanese, and Balinese art. Along with texts of archival significance, the gallery also holds a variety of miniatures, including 400-year-old Tanjore miniature paintings. Kerala's rich artistic legacy is demonstrated by this treasure trove of artwork, some of which cost millions of dollars.
The exhibition also honours the Bengal School of Art, which combined traditional methods with contemporary sensibilities to transform Indian painting in the early 20th century. The collection of paintings by renowned Russian painters Nicholas Roerich and his son Svetoslav Roerich, which mostly feature the Himalayas in their ethereal majesty, is another highlight of the exhibition.

Raja Ravi Varma Art GalleryThe principal works of Raja Ravi Varma, his brother C. Raja Raja Varma, and his sister Mangalabai Thampuratty are on show in the Raja Ravi Varma Art Gallery, a distinct gallery inside the Napier Museum. The magnificent creations of Raja Ravi Varma, a master artist, are among the gallery's most valued holdings. In 1873, Ravi Varma, a member of the Travancore royal family, received praise from all around the world for an exhibition of his paintings in Vienna. He was one of the first Indian artists to become proficient in the European oil painting method, which he then applied to Indian themes and subjects. Additionally, he democratised art by being the first in India to manufacture art prints in large quantities.
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