PROBABLY BY THE ARTIST, PUNJAB, CIRCA 1850

This portrait relates closely to another identified as Bishan Singh published in K.C. Aryan, Punjab Painting ('Notes on the Painters', No.4, no page number). That painting is inscribed bishan singh musavvir which suggests that it was painted by the artist. Bishan Singh is particularly noted for his impressively detailed large paintings depicting life in Amritsar and Lahore, two such paintings contain depictions of artists, thought to be Bishan Singh himself. The first is a painting of the Court of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, sold Sotheby’s London, 31 March 2021, lot 44 and the second a large painting of the walled city of Amritsar, sold at Roseberys 15 April 2015, lot 131 and now in the Private Collection. In each he is depicted in profile and as a member of the wider cast of characters.

Bishan Singh became particularly famous for his detailed depictions of the Court of Maharaja Ranjit Singh (1780-1839) but his repertoire embodies more than mastery; his work traces a pivotal point in Pahari painting as Singh “was the first to imbibe the western ideas of painting [and] was followed by a host of painters” (K.S. Kang “Art and Architecture of Panjab,” in History and Culture of Panjab, ed. Mohinder Singh, Delhi, 1988, 276). Bishan Singh’s epic works seamlessly fused two otherwise contrasting styles, producing work that responded to the phenomenon of the rise of Company painting and English talent in the Kashmiri region (R. Crill “Textiles in the Punjab,” in The Arts of the Sikh Kingdoms, ed. Susan Stronge, London, 2001, 112). Two large format paintings by the artist sold in these Rooms, 31 March 2022, lots 97 and 98.