Google Doodle celebrates life and work of Jamini Roy

From calligraphy, to animals, to Jesus Christ, his work encompassed many different subjects and motifs," the doodle reads.

New Delhi, April 11: On the 130th birth anniversary of Jamini Roy, search engine Google has paid tribute to India's first modernist artist with a doodle that chronicles his prolific career spanning over six decades.

Roy who was tutored under the Bengal School of Art under the mentorship of Abanindranath Tagore, shifted from the academic tradition of drawing classical nudes and went on to derive inspiration from the Indian culture. After graduating, the doodle notes, most of Roy's paintings were in Western styles, like portraiture and Impressionism.

However, influenced by the growing surge of nationalism, he consciously rejected Western artistic styles and searched for a more 'Indian' form of artistic expression.

"He sought inspiration from East Asian calligraphy, terracotta temple friezes, folk arts and crafts traditions. From calligraphy, to animals, to Jesus Christ, his work encompassed many different subjects and motifs," the doodle reads.

Although painted decades ago, it is fascinating to see the universality and timelessness of Roy's quintessential contours and colour scheme, his representation of the humble santhal community of Bengal and his sensitive yet sensuous treatment of the female form in his artworks.

The doodle features iconic works from different phases of his career - 'Three Pujarins', 'Portrait of a Lady' , the 'Krishna Leela', 'Christ', and the 'Mother and Child' series among others, which were part of a special exhibition on the artist by National Gallery of Modern Art here, to commemorate Roy's 125th birth anniversary. Roy died in 1972.

PTI