Lot Essay
This finely rendered terrace scene has been attributed to Faizullah, an Awadhi artist who was painting in Faizabad and Lucknow in the late 18th century. The use of perspective displays a strong European influence and is inherited from earlier Mughal paintings which would have been known to artists in Awadh. In the late 18th century, Awadhi artists developed a penchant for lavish terrace scenes and a vibrant palette with bright textiles and women in colourful dresses. The figures and peacocks in this painting find comparison with another painting ascribed to Faizullah formerly in the William K. Ehrenfeld Collection and now in the Collection of Eva and Konrad Seitz (Ehnbom, 1985, cat.no.33, pp.82-83). The figures can also be compared to another terrace scene attributed to Faizullah which sold in these Rooms, 10 October 2013, lot 192.