Academy of Fine Arts

April 16, 2024

Founded by Lady Ranu Mukherjee in 1933 and run under her competent trusteeship, Academy of Fine Arts is one of the oldest fine arts societies in India.

The entrance

Lady Ranu Mukherjee (born as Priti Adhikary) (1907 – 2000) was a notable patron of Indian art and culture. She hailed from a cultural lineage and was married to an elite family. She was honored with the Légion d'Honneur by the Government of France. She became Rabindranath Tagore's muse, during the last years of the poet's life and was greatly influenced by the Tagorean genre of aesthetics. She remained the President of the Academy of Fine Arts till 1997. She also held respectable positions at Lalit Kala Academy, Indian Museum in Kolkata, Calcutta University, Benaras Hindu University, Asiatic Society, Rabindra Bharati University and other notable institutions.

Painting of Lady Ranu Mukherjee displayed here

The institution was initially located in a room lent out by the Indian Museum, and the annual exhibitions used to take place in the adjoining verandah. In 1950s the Academy shifted to its present location under the patronage of Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy and Shri Jawaharlal Nehru.
The six galleries, auditorium, conference centre and a museum are its prominent components. The prized collectibles donated by Lady Ranu Mukherjee includes paintings and textiles from the Bengal School.
Notable original paintings found here include Saat Bhai Champa by Gaganendranath Tagore and Shiva with Ganesha by Jamini Roy. Eminent artists whose works are found here include Rabindranath, Abanindranath, Sunayani Devi, Atul Bose, Ramkinkar Baij, Benode Behari Mukherjee, Jamini Roy, Jogen Chowdhury among others. The Old Engravings Gallery is rich with the art works of Danielle, Colebricke, Joffany, Atkinson and others. The Contemporary Graphic Art and Line Drawing Gallery houses the works of Jainul Abedin, Nandalal Bose, Ramendranath Chakraborty, Chitta Prasad, Mukul De, Haren Das and others.
The original manuscript of Tagore’s Bhanushingher Padabali is preserved here. Textiles (Balucharis, Benarasis, Chamba Rumal, Daccai Jamdani, Patola and others) books, personal belongings, and locks of hair of Shri Rabindranath Tagore which were gifted to Lady Mookherjee by the Poet are the prized items here.
Important collection of Academy Museum is the T. Leslie Martin collection of Carpets that are housed in the Carpet Gallery.
The Miniature Art Gallery houses painting of various schools like Mughal, Rajasthani, Ram-Sita, Rag-Ragini and others. The gallery of Contemporary Art has a good collection of paintings and sculptures from 1900 to present day.
The theatre auditorium has witnessed performance by eminent artists including Shambhu Mitra, Utpal Dutt, Shaoli Mitra, Soumitra Chatterjee, Manoj Mitra, Ramaprasad Banik, Ajitesh Bandyopadhyay, Rudraprasad Sengupta, Swatilekha Sengupta and others. Since 1984, an annual theatre festival is organised here. The Nandikar and Nandimukh International theatre festival is still organised at the venue.
The Academy of Fine Arts run Painting Class (Children, Junior & Senior Section), Sketch Club (Practice Class for Art lover & Student), Applied Art & Design Course and Interior Design Course. There is also a Library that consists of art related reference books in the same campus.
Since 1990s the Academy of Fine Arts is witnessing a decline from the pinnacle it once occupied. The Academy was once a coveted destination for new-age artists and theatre performers who came in the wake of the Independence, defining new styles, forms, genres, and creativity. Today it has largely become a space for amateur artists.
The priceless assets are locked away from public viewing thus keeping the audience in total darkness regarding the splendor of the Academy. Moreover, there were rumors that significant portions of the collection had disappeared from the prized collections due to the negligence of the later trustees. As noted by Tapati Guha Thakurta, a leading historian, and scholar, particularly of the Bengal School and its evolution, the Academy after its humble beginning and during the able leadership of Lady Ranu Mukherjee, was the "nerve centre" of the city, and a space for "public art culture" but "somehow exists today". The opening up of new galleries in the city, with their more market-oriented approach and global clientele overshadowed the Academy. The Academy's financial condition too has drastically deteriorated.
The sprawling campus resonates with an artistic vibe. Numerous sculptures are found in the premises, a few of which are shown here.