RAJA RAVI VARMA (രാജാ രവി വര്‍മ്മ)

RAJA RAVI VARMA

(രാജാ രവി വര്‍മ്മ)

Raja Ravi Varma (രാജാ രവി വര്‍മ്മ) (April 29, 1848 – October 2, 1906) was an Indian artist from the princely state of Travancore   who achieved recognition for his depiction of scenes from the  epics of the  Mahabharatha and Ramayana. His paintings are considered to be among the best examples of the fusion of Indian traditions with the techniques of European academic art.Varma is most remembered for his paintings of sari-clad women portrayed as shapely and graceful. Varma's paintings became an important motif of the time, reproductions being found in almost every middle-class home. His exposure in the west came when he won the first prize in the Vienna   Art Exhibition in 1873. Raja Ravi Varma died in 1906 at the age of 58. He is considered among the greatest painters in the history of Indian art   Raja Ravi Varma was born as Ravi Varma Koil Thampuran of  Kilimanoor palace   in the erstwhile  princely state of Travancore in Kerala. His father Ezhumavail Neelakanthan Bhattatiripad was an accomplished scholar, and his mother Umayamba Thampuratti (died 1886) was a poet and writer whose work Parvati Swayamvaram was published by Raja Ravi Varma after her death. His siblings were C. Goda Varma (born 1854), C. Raja 

Raja Varma (born 1860) and Mangala Bayi Thampuratti, who was also a painter.

At a young age he secured the patronage of HH Maharajah Ayolyam Thirunal of Travancore (a relative) and began formal training thereafter. He learned the basics of drawing in Madurai Chithirakara veddhi(Artist's street). He was trained in water painting by Rama Swami Naidu and later in  oil painting by Dutch portraitist  Theodor Henson .

Raja Ravi Varma High School at Kilimanoor   was named after him. There are many cultural organizations throughout Kerala in his name. His palace is nearly 6 kilometers from Ponganadu, 7.7 kilometers from Pazhayachanda and 36 km from Thiruvananthapuram the capital of Kerala.

Raja Ravi Varma (1848-1906) was born in Kilimanoor Palace as the son of Umamba Thampuratti and Ezhumavil Neelakandan Bhattathiripad. At the age of seven years he started drawing on the palace walls using charcoal. His uncle Raja Raja Varma noticed the talent of the child and gave preliminary lessons on painting. At the age of 14, Ayilyam Thirunal Maharaja took him to Travancore Palace and he was taught water painting by the palace painter Rama Swamy Naidu. After 3 years Theodor Jenson, a British painter taught him oil painting.Most of his oil paintings are based on Hindu epic stories and characters. In 1873 he won the First Prize at the Madras Painting Exhibition. He became a world famous Indian painter after winning in 1873 Vienna Exhibition. Many of his oil paintings are classic and his unique Indian style has later influenced artists and designers worldwide. Here we have displayed pictures of some of the classic oil paintings and oleographs of Raja Ravi Varma. Prof. John Kurakar