Rustom Siodia: A Forgotten Master

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Art in India has largely been a niche world, with few artists being known beyond the rather small circle of connoisseurs. But even within this small world, some brilliant artists and their work have been forgotten or lost with the passage of time. One of them is Rustom Siodia. Siodia, who is little-known, was a brilliant Indian artist, who lived at the dawn of the 20th century. This was a a time when the art scene in the country was rapidly evolving. It was an exciting time to be an artist then as art schools were being set up in different parts of the country, new ideas and methods were being introduced, artists were developing their signature styles and there was exposure to distant cultures. Siodia was born in 1881 in a Parsi family in Bombay. His father worked for the well-known Parsi businessman and philanthropist Byramjee Jeejeebhoy, who built colleges and hospitals in the city. Siodia was born at a time of great change. From 1860s onwards, Bombay had emerged as the commercial capital of India due to a combination of factors like the opening of the Suez Canal, setting up of cotton mills, and a booming trade in cotton and opium. Awash with money, the city’s richer denizens were also turning their attention to the arts. Many of them were getting their portraits painted, and were interested in collecting art and antiquities. Around the same time, Sir Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy had funded the establishment of the Sir J J School of Art in 1857. The Parsi community that Siodia belonged to was at the forefront of many of these activities. Siodia showed an early talent for art and studied at the Sir JJ School of Art in the first decade of the 1900s. As a student there, he did not agree with the teaching methodologies introduced by the then principal, Cecil Burns. Siodia, in fact, believed that academic realism was the most appropriate method of teaching art. Siodia decided to further his education and, in 1908, enrolled at the Royal Academy in London, making him a pioneer of sorts as he was only the second Indian and the first Parsi to study there. He returned to India in 1913 and in a couple of years set up a studio in the Grant Road locality of Bombay. His talent and reputation brought him countless commissions. Siodia started his career as a portrait artist, when the ‘Salon’ style was popular. Many Indian kings, princes as well as wealthy businessmen and traders were getting their portraits painted. ...

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