Artist Jamini Roy’s house, which was acquired by Delhi Art Gallery (DAG), will be turned into a museum and cultural resource centre on the life, work and times of the artist.
The Telegraph had reported on February 17 that Jamini Roy’s house at Ballygunge Place has been bought by the DAG from his descendants.
The private gallery on Tuesday announced its intention to turn it into “India’s first private single-artist museum and cultural resource centre on the life, work and times of this pioneering artist”.
DAG intends to renovate the three-storey house with the help of restoration architects and designers before turning it into a museum.
DAG CEO and managing director Ashish Anand said: “It (the acquisition of Jamini Roy’s house and turning it into a museum) is the single most important project undertaken by the DAG in its three decades and is due to open next year.”
Art historian Tapati Guha Thakurta said: “While there is a tradition in the west to have artist house museums like the Rembrandt House Museum where the artist’s place of residence has been turned into a museum of the artist’s works, there is no such tradition here except for Rabindranath’s house Uttarayan that has his works. Unfortunately, governments or local municipal bodies here do not take the initiative to acquire artist’s homes and turn them into museums.”
In 1949, Jamini Roy moved from his rented Bagbazar home in north Kolkata to the genteel neighbourhood of Ballygunge Place, a part of which was known as Dihi Serampore Lane at the time.
Here, as his practice grew, so did his family, and the artist added rooms and floors to the home in which he lived till his passing away in 1972. Four years later, the government of India declared him a National Treasure artist.
“I have grown up hearing my mother’s stories and memories of her grandfather and his art and his discipline and the way his studio was his temple. We are delighted that DAG is sharing the legacy of my great grandfather’s house as well as his art practice with the people of Bengal and art-lovers everywhere. He always wanted his art to reach the people and this is the ideal way to pay homage to him,” said Arkamitra Roy, great-granddaughter of Jamini Roy.
The museum, with a built-up area of 7,284.17sqft across three floors, will be equipped with state-of-the-art galleries to house the permanent collection as well as rotating exhibitions. It will also have a resource centre and a library, art workshops and event spaces, as well as a museum shop and café to complete the visitor experience.
DAG CEO Anand said: “DAG has one of the most comprehensive collections of works by Jamini Roy, something it has been building over the years and will consolidate further with the museum in mind.”
DAG will hold a show in its galleries in Mumbai on April 2 titled ‘Living Traditions & the Art of Jamini Roy’ which will be a sneak peek of what the Jamini Roy House Artist Museum in Kolkata will be.