View source for Amrita Sher-Gil's paintings at Lahore (1937)

{{Short description|1937 exhibition of Amrita Sher-Gil's paintings at Lahore}}

[[File:Amrita Sher-Gil in sari.jpg|thumb|right|Amrita Sher-Gil]]

The Hungarian-born Indian artist [[Amrita Sher-Gil]], exhibited 33 of her paintings at her '''One-man Show''' in the ballroom at [[Faletti's Hotel]] in [[Lahore]], [[Presidencies and provinces of British India|British India]], held from 21 to 27 November 1937. Four paintings were sold in total; ''[[The Little Girl in Blue]]'' (1934), ''[[The Story Teller (painting)|The Story]]'' (1937), ''Pink Self-portrait'', and ''[[The Vina Player]]'' (1937).

At the opening, Punjab's finance minister, [[Manohar Lal (economist)|Manohar Lal]], praised the self-portrait she did not like. [[Charles Fabri]] commended the exhibition in general, though criticised the show for being too ornate. The attendance was good. With eight [[Indian anna|annas]] per entry, the exhibition made around ₹25 a day from entrance fees alone.

==Preparation==
[[File:Amrita Sher-Gil painting South Indian Villagers Going to Market 1937 Simla.jpg|thumb|left|Amrita Sher-Gil painting South Indian Villagers Going to Market 1937 Simla]]
The Hungarian-born Indian artist [[Amrita Sher-Gil]] exhibited 33 of her paintings, dubbed her "One-man Show", in the ballroom at [[Faletti's Hotel]] in [[Lahore]], [[Presidencies and provinces of British India|British India]], held from 21 to 27 November 1937.<ref name=Sundaram2010.418>Sundaram, pp. 418-423</ref><ref name=Singh1975>{{cite journal |last1=Singh |first1=N Iqbal |date=1975 |title=Amrita Sher-Gil |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/23001838 |journal=India International Centre Quarterly |volume=2 |issue=3 |pages=209–217 |jstor=23001838 |issn=0376-9771 |url-access=subscription}}</ref> Having checked into Faletti's a week before the opening, she arranged invitations, oversaw plans for lighting, and unpacked her artwork.<ref name=Dalmia.98/>

==Opening==
[[File:Amrita Sher-Gil Lahore 1937 Exhibition.jpg|thumb|right|Exhibition opening at Lahore 1937]]
[[File:Amrita Sher-Gil and Dalip Singh Majithia.jpg|thumb|Amrita Sher-Gil and Dalip Singh Majithia 1937 Lahore]]
The exhibition was opened by Punjab's finance minister, [[Manohar Lal (economist)|Manohar Lal]].<ref name=Sundaram2010.418/> Over 150 people attended on that day.<ref name=FabriNov1936>{{cite news |last1=Fabri |first1=Charles L. |title=Two art exhibitions: Miss Sher0Gil and Miss Townsend |work=Civil & Military Gazette |date=24 November 1937 |location=Lahore |page=10}}</ref> Dressed in a gold-bordered sari, twice wrapped covering a brocade blouse, and wearing large Tibetan jewellery, Sher-Gil greeted guests at the entrance.<ref name=Dalmia.98/> Attendees included [[Dalip Singh Majithia]], [[Badruddin Tyabji (diplomat)|Badruddin Tyabji]], [[Diwan Chaman Lall]], Justice [[Bakshi Tek Chand]], [[Lahore Museum]]'s curator [[K. N. Sitaram]], Kanwar Dalip Singh of [[Kapurthala State|Kapurthala]], and [[Bhim Sen Sachar]].<ref name=Sundaram2010.418/><ref name=Dalmia.98>Dalmia, 98-99</ref><ref name=Ananth2007.24>Ananth, p. 24</ref> Students of [[University of the Punjab|Punjab University]] attended.<ref name=Dalmia.103>Dalmia, 103-105</ref> The ''[[Civil and Military Gazette|Civil and Military Gazette's]]'' art critic Fabri was also present.<ref name=CMGDec1941>{{cite news |title=Well known artist dies in Lahore |work=Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) |date=7 December 1941 |page=4}}</ref> It was there that Sher-Gil and Fabri first met.<ref name=Dalmia.100>Dalmia, 100-102</ref> The governor, [[Herbert William Emerson|Sir Herbert William Emerson]], and Lady Emerson, visited the exhibition for a private viewing on 24 November.<ref name=C&MG27Nov1937>{{cite news |title=Miss Sher-Gil's paintings: Punjab governor visits exhibition |work=Civil & Military Gazette |date=27 November 1937 |location=Lahore |page=4}}</ref><ref name=Sundaram2010.424>Sundaram, pp. 424-429</ref>

==Exhibits==
[[File:Amrita Sher-Gil Lahore 1937 Catalogue2.jpg|thumb|left|1937 Catalogue]]
[[File:Amrita Sher-Gil at Lahore 1937 Exhibition.jpg|thumb|Amrita Sher-Gil at her 1937 Lahore Exhibition]]
Paintings exhibited included ''[[Young Man with Apples]]'' (1932), ''[[Sleep (painting)|Sleep]]'' (1933), ''[[Professional Model|A Professional Model]]'' (1933), ''The Little Girl in Blue'' (1934), ''[[Three Girls (painting)|Three Girls]]'' (1935), ''[[Bride's Toilet|The Bride's Toilet]]'' (1937), and ''The Story Teller'' (1937).<ref name=Sundaram2010.418/> The previous year, ''Sleep'' and ''Group of Young Girls'' had been displayed at the exhibition hall in the [[Public Gardens, Hyderabad]].<ref name=Sundaram2010.266>Sundaram, pp. 266-270</ref> Hoping that the wealthy art collector, [[Mir Yousuf Ali Khan, Salar Jung III|Nawab Salar Jung]] would purchase them, Sher-Gil was disappointed when after keeping them for several days the Nawab returned them, commenting that he had "no use for these [[Cubism|Cubist]] pictures".<ref name=Sundaram2010.271/> Re-exhibited at the November 1937 Lahore show, they did not sell and remained in Sher-Gil's possession.<ref name=Sundaram2010.418/>

During her time at Lahore, Sher-Gil painted two commissioned paintings, which she did not approve of and left them unsigned.<ref name=Dalmia.103/> Two other paintings she completed there were ''The Red Brick House'' and a portrait of [[Helen Chaman Lal]].<ref name=Dalmia.103/>

==Response==
Four paintings were sold in total.<ref name=Sundaram2010.430>Sundaram, pp. 430-431</ref> Tyabji later recalled that "the exhibition was well attended", and that Sher-Gil appreciated that he bought ''The Story Teller''.<ref name=Sundaram2010.424/>{{efn|Catalogued as ''The Story'' in the original programme.<ref name=Sundaram2010.418/>}} With the help of Chamanlall, ''The Little Girl in Blue'' was sold to Fabri.<ref name=Sundaram2010.424/> ''The Vina Player'', Sher-Gil's mother's favourite, was initially not for sale, but then acquired by the Lahore Museum, through the encouragement of Fabri and Sita Ram.<ref name=Sundaram2010.418/><ref name=Sundaram2010.424/> The other painting sold was titled ''Pink Self-portrait''.<ref name=Sundaram2010.430>Sundaram, pp. 430-431</ref>{{efn|No such painting title in the programme, though several self-portraits are listed.<ref name=Sundaram2010.418/>}}

At the opening, Manohar Lal praised the self-portrait she did not like.<ref name=Dalmia.98/> Fabri called the show a "revelation",<ref name=Singh1975/> and "a feast for the eyes".<ref name=Dalmia.98/> He called her work "essentially modern without being fantastic", while criticising it for being "decorative to the extreme".<ref name=Dalmia.98/> With eight annas per entry, the exhibition made around ₹25 a day from entrance fees alone.<ref name=Sundaram2010.424/> On 24 November 1937, reviews of the exhibition in the ''Civil and Military Gazette'' coincided with reviews of the block-buster film ''[[Jeevan Prabhat]]''.<ref name=Sundaram2010.424/> One newspaper reported of the artwork that "each one seemed to excell the other in art and presentation".<ref name=Singh1975/>

==List of paintings exhibited==
This is a list of the 33 paintings exhibited at Lahore in 1937 as catalogued and titled in the original programme:<ref name=Sundaram2010.418/>

{| class="wikitable"
! Catalogue number!!Title !! Image!! Catalogue price (1937)<ref name=Sundaram2010.418/>!! Notes
|-
|1||{{sort|{{nts|1937}}|[[1937 in art|1937]]}}:<br>''[[Bride's Toilet|The Bride's Toilet]]''||[[File:Amrita Sger-Gil Bride's Toilet.jpg|150px]]
|₹1,500
|One of Sher-Gil's South Indian trilogy.<ref name=Dalmia2013.201>Dalmia, p. 201</ref>
|-
|2 ||{{sort|{{nts|1937}}|[[1937 in art|1937]]}}:<br>''[[Brahmacharis (painting)|Brahmacharis]]''|| || ₹1,500
|One of Sher-Gil's South Indian trilogy.<ref name=Dalmia2013.201/>
|-
|3 ||{{sort|{{nts|1935}}|[[1935 in art|1935]]}}:<br>''[[Hill Men|Villagers in Winter]]'' || ||₹1,500

|Later known as ''Hill Men''.<ref name=Tillotson1997>{{cite journal |last1=Tillotson |first1=G.H.R. |title=A Painter of Concern: Critical Writings on Amrita Sher-Gil |journal=India International Centre Quarterly |date=1997 |volume=24 |issue=4 |pages=57–72 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/23002294 |issn=0376-9771|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

|-
|4 ||{{sort|{{nts|1935}}|[[1935 in art|1935]]}}:<br>''[[Hill Women]]'' ||[[File:Women-Painting of Amrita Sher Girl (cropped).jpeg|150px]]
|₹1,500
|Depicts a girl and three young women.<ref name=Haupt2016>{{cite book |last1=Haupt |first1=Christina |title=Amrita Sher-Gil and the representations of non-western female bodies |date=2016 |publisher=Grin |location=Norderstedt |isbn=978-3-6684-887-7-9 |pages=5–7}}</ref>
|-
|5 ||{{sort|{{nts|1937}}|[[1937 in art|1937]]}}:<br>''[[The Vina Player]]'' || [[File:The Vina Player (cropped).jpg|150px]]
| Not for sale
|Sold to the Museum of Lahore.<ref name=Sundaram2010.424/>
|-
|6 ||''Greeting''  || ||₹200
|
|-
|7 ||''[[Woman and Children of Travancore]]''  ||  ||₹500
|[[Vivan Sundaram]] notes that this painting was later renamed ''Fruit Vendors'',<ref name=Sundaram2010.772>Sundaram, p. 772</ref> though the exhibition catalogue lists both these as separate paintings (see 22).<ref name=Sundaram2010.418/>
|-
|8 ||{{sort|{{nts|1935}}|[[1935 in art|1935]]}}:<br>''The Man in White''|| || ₹350
|
|-
|9 ||{{sort|{{nts|1935}}|[[1935 in art|1935]]}}:<br>''Mother India'' || ||₹500
|
|-
|10 ||{{sort|{{nts|1937}}|[[1937 in art|1937]]}}:<br>''Head of a Girl''  ||[[File:Amrita Sher-Gil Head of Girl 1937 Simla.jpg|150px]] || ₹150
|
|-
|11 ||{{sort|{{nts|1935}}|[[1935 in art|1935]]}}:<br>''[[Three Girls (painting)|Group of Young Girls]]''   || ||₹700

|Won the Gold Medal at the annual exhibition of the [[Bombay Art Society]] in 1937.<ref name=Dalmia2013.77>Dalmia, pp. 77-78</ref>

|-
|12 ||{{sort|{{nts|1934}}|[[1934 in art|1934]]}}:<br>''[[The Little Girl in Blue]]'' ||[[File:The Little Girl in Blue by Amrita Sher-Gil.jpg|150px]]

|₹150

|Bought at the 1937 exhibition by [[Charles Fabri]] with the assistance of [[Diwan Chaman Lall]].<ref name=Sundaram2010.424/>

Fetched ₹18.69 crore, or $2.67 million in 2018, through auction at Sotheby's, Mumbai.<ref name=Tripathi2018>{{cite news |last1=Tripathi |first1=Smita |title=Tyeb Mehta and Amrita Sher-Gil to lead Sotheby's first auction in India |url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/culture/arts/tyeb-mehta-and-amrita-sher-gil-to-lead-sotheby-s-first-auction-in-india/cid/1676887 |access-date=12 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231113052353/https://www.telegraphindia.com/culture/arts/tyeb-mehta-and-amrita-sher-gil-to-lead-sotheby-s-first-auction-in-india/cid/1676887|archive-date=13 November 2023|work=www.telegraphindia.com |date=28 November 2018 |language=en}}</ref><ref name=Tribune2028>{{cite news |title=Amrita Sher-Gil's 'The Little Girl in Blue' fetches Rs 18.69 crore |url=https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/archive/nation/amrita-sher-gil-s-the-little-girl-in-blue-fetches-rs-18-69-crore-691393 |access-date=12 November 2023 |work=Tribune |date=30 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231112082104/https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/archive/nation/amrita-sher-gil-s-the-little-girl-in-blue-fetches-rs-18-69-crore-691393 |archive-date=12 November 2023}}</ref><ref name=Shaw2021>{{Cite thesis |title=Why Now?: The Euro-U.S. Canon Adopts Tarsila do Amaral and Amrita Sher-Gil Almost 90 Years Later |url=https://escholarship.org/uc/item/64k1h1vj |publisher=UC Davis |date=2021 |language=en |first=Amanda |last=Shaw-Johnson}}</ref>
|-
|13 ||{{sort|{{nts|1935}}|[[1935 in art|1935]]}}:<br>''[[Woman on Terrace|On the Terrace]]''|| || ₹500
|
|-
|14 ||{{sort|{{nts|1937}}|[[1937 in art|1937]]}}:<br>''Girl with Pitcher'' || || ₹500
|
|-
|15 ||''Study in Green'' || || Not for sale
|
|-
|16 ||{{sort|{{nts|1933}}|[[1933 in art|1933]]}}:<br>''[[Professional Model|A Professional Model]]'' || || Not for sale
|
|-
|17 ||{{sort|{{nts|1933}}|[[1933 in art|1933]]}}:<br>''[[Sleep (painting)|Sleep]]'' ||[[File:Painting Sleep 1932.jpg|150px]] || ₹1,000.

|Earlier in 1937, [[Mir Yousuf Ali Khan, Salar Jung III|Nawab Salar Jung]] had initially shown interest in it, though did not buy it. Later, Sher-Gil left it with Chaman Lall to "palm off", but it did not sell.<ref name=Sundaram2010.271>Sundaram, pp. 271-285</ref>
|-
|18 ||{{sort|{{nts|1937}}|[[1937 in art|1937]]}}:<br>''Siesta''  ||[[File:Amrita Sher-Gil Siesta 1937 Simla.jpg|150px]] || ₹750
|
|-
|19||''Landscape'' || || ₹100 
|
|-
|20 ||''Self-Portrait''  || ||Not for sale
|
|-
|21 ||{{sort|{{nts|1935}}|[[1935 in art|1935]]}}:<br>''My Father'' ||[[File:Portrait of Father SherGil 1935 Simla.jpg|150px]] || Not for sale
|
|-
|22 ||''Fruit Vendors'' || || ₹250
|Vivan Sundaram notes that this painting was renamed from ''Woman and Children of Travancore'' (see 7),<ref name=Sundaram2010.772>Sundaram, p. 772</ref> though the exhibition catalogue lists both these as separate paintings.<ref name=Sundaram2010.418/>
|-
|23 ||{{sort|{{nts|1937}}|[[1935 in art|1935]]}}:<br>''[[South Indian Villagers going to Market|South Indian Peasants going to Market]]''
|[[File:Amrita Sher-Gil South Indian Villagers Going to Market 1937 Simla.jpg|150px]]
|₹1,500 
|One of Sher-Gil's South Indian trilogy, later known as ''South Indian Villagers Going to Market''.<ref name=Dalmia2013.201/>
|-
|24||''The Girl in Red'' || || ₹500
|
|-
|25 ||{{sort|{{nts|1932}}|[[1932 in art|1932]]}}:<br>''[[Young Man with Apples]]'' ||[[File:Young Man with Apples.jpg|150px]] ||₹500
|
|-
|26 ||''Torso'' || || Not for sale
|
|-
|27 ||''The Dreamer'' || || ₹500
|
|-
|28 ||''The Girl with the Glove''  || || ₹400
|
|-
|29 ||''Corner of a Studio in Paris'' || || Not for sale
|
|-
|30 ||''Painting'' || || ₹350
|Shortly after the exhibition, Sher-Gil wrote to [[Karl Jamshed Khandalavala|Karl Khandalavala]] that she was sending him (among five paintings), "my fantasy", "which I have called ''Painting''".<ref name=Sundaram2010.418/><ref name=Sundaram2010.430/>
|-
|31 ||{{sort|{{nts|1937}}|[[1937 in art|1937]]}}:<br>''[[The Story Teller (painting)|The Story]]'' ||
|₹350
|Bought at the exhibition by [[Badruddin Tyabji (diplomat)|Badruddin Tyabji]].<ref name=Sundaram2010.424/>

In 2023 it was sold for Rs 61.8 crore, equivalent to $7.45m.<ref name=CMGDec1941>{{cite news |title=Well known artist dies in Lahore |work=Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) |date=7 December 1941 |page=4}}</ref><ref name=TET2023>{{Cite news |date=19 September 2023 |title=Amrita Sher-gil's 'The Story teller' is now the most expensive Indian painting! Oil on canvas masterpiece fetches Rs 61.8 cr at Delhi auction |work=The Economic Times |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/amrita-sher-gils-the-story-teller-is-now-the-most-expensive-indian-painting-oil-on-canvas-masterpiece-fetches-rs-61-8-cr-at-delhi-auction/articleshow/103770939.cms?from=mdr |access-date=19 September 2023 |issn=0013-0389 |archive-date=26 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230926085547/https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/amrita-sher-gils-the-story-teller-is-now-the-most-expensive-indian-painting-oil-on-canvas-masterpiece-fetches-rs-61-8-cr-at-delhi-auction/articleshow/103770939.cms?from=mdr |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=Lal2023>{{cite news |last1=Lal |first1=Neeta |title=The Story Teller: A closer look at Amrita Sher-Gil's record-breaking $7.45m painting |url=https://www.thenationalnews.com/arts-culture/art-design/2023/09/22/the-story-teller-amrita-sher-gil/ |access-date=30 October 2023 |work=The National |date=22 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231030144932/https://www.thenationalnews.com/arts-culture/art-design/2023/09/22/the-story-teller-amrita-sher-gil/ |archive-date=30 October 2023 |language=en}}</ref>
|-
|32 ||{{sort|{{nts|1937}}|[[1937 in art|1937]]}}:<br>''Dressing the Bride''  || [[File:Amrita Sher-Gil Dressing the Bride 1937 Simla.jpg|150px]]|| ₹700
|
|-
|33 ||''Head'' || || ₹150
|
|-
|}

==See also==
* [[List of paintings by Amrita Sher-Gil]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==Bibliography==
* {{cite book |last1=Ananth |first1=Deepak |title=Amrita Sher-Gil: An Indian Artist Family of the Twentieth Century |date=2007 |publisher=Schirmer/Mosel |isbn=978-3-8295-0270-2  |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vd7qAAAAMAAJ |language=en }}
* {{Cite book |last=Dalmia|first=Yashodhara  |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Mj3mlgEACAAJ |title=Amrita Sher-Gil: A Life |date=2013 |publisher=Penguin Books |location=Gurugram |isbn=978-0-14-342026-2 |language=en}}
* {{cite book |last1=Sundaram |first1=Vivan |title=Amrita Sher-Gil: A Self-Portrait in Letters and Writings |date=2010 |publisher=Tulika Books |location=New Delhi |volume=1|pages=1-417|isbn=978-81-89487-59-1}}
* {{cite book |last1=Sundaram |first1=Vivan |title=Amrita Sher-Gil: A Self-Portrait in Letters and Writings |date=2010 |publisher=Tulika Books |location=New Delhi |volume=2|pages=418-821|isbn=978-81-89487-59-1}}

{{Amrita Sher-Gil}}

{{Lists of paintings}}

[[Category:Paintings by Amrita Sher-Gil]]
[[Category:20th-century paintings]]
[[Category:Portrait art]]
[[Category:1937 in British India]]