The present book is a unique study of the Rajview of Indian art based on archival records of the Government of British India–the relevant records have so far eluded the attention of professional historians as well as chroniclers of the development of Indian art under the Raj. The British Indian Government records reveal that though the art administrators were enchanted by the Indian decorative designs on wood, stone, cotton, metal and earth, they firmly believed that the Indians lacked the sense of "Fine Arts"–both intellectually and factually. Art schools were established during the days of the Raj to produce draughtsmen for public works department, and their principals were directed to document Indian designs and motifs for the benefit of the European manufacturers. Some sincere attempts of the British civil servants, physicians, army officers and trained artists to popularise and encourage Indian decorative art in India and abroad through exhibitions and patronage have also been highlighted. The activities and recommendations of the Art Conferences and Art Committees of the nineteenth century India have been discussed to expose the bureaucratic cynic idiosyncrasies and, sometimes, their genuine concern for the cause of Indian art. Besides interesting archival documents, pieces of artwork done by the students of the Schools of Art in British India have been reproduced to experience an aesthetic feel of those heritage days.
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