19th C. Indian And European Women Painting By A. C. Hutchinson, 1837
A 19th-century watercolour painting of two Indian women and a European woman by Major A C Hutchinson, probably in 1837. This is the final edition of A C Hutchinson’s watercolour painting in this collection. It depicts two Indian women, a European woman, and what appears to be a sleeping man in a loincloth.
One of the Indian women carries several pots, probably to fetch water from a nearby pond or rivulet. The other Indian woman looks to be a maid servant, perhaps for the European woman shown in the painting. The European woman seems busy in her own world. The arrival of British women in India was not common simply because of the hazardous journey by sea by rounding the Cape they would have to take in the 19th century. But once the Suez Canal opened, the journey became less hazardous, cheaper, and faster.
Although the artwork is unsigned and untitled, the artwork is believed to have been done by the gifted Major A C Hutchinson. Not much is known about him except that he was with the Bengal Artillery, which was then under the East India Company. Hutchinson’s artworks were evidently impressions of British Raj life during the 19th century. Click image to enlarge.
Also read In photos: Colonial India through the eyes of foreign artists.
Did you know – the Bengal School of Art, founded in the late 19th century, played a crucial role in promoting watercolour painting as a distinct art form in India.
