Artwork Page for English Babu (Native Indian Clerk) Holding a Hookah

Details / Information for English Babu (Native Indian Clerk) Holding a Hookah

English Babu (Native Indian Clerk) Holding a Hookah

c. 1890

Eastern India, Bengal, Kolkata, Kalighat

Medium
Gum tempera, graphite, ink, and tin on paper
Measurements
Secondary Support: 48 x 29.5 cm (18 7/8 x 11 5/8 in.); Painting only: 45.7 x 28 cm (18 x 11 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of William E. Ward in memory of his wife, Evelyn Svec Ward 2003.145
Public Domain
You can copy, modify, and distribute this work, all without asking permission. Learn more about CMA's Open Access Initiative.
Location
Not on view
Print

Description

This is an archetypal satirical caricature of a native Indian clerk (babu), a Bengali dapper dandy whose fashion sense combines British and Indian mores with dissonant results. Imitating his British masters, he sits cross-legged on a Victorian chair, holding a hookah, sporting a Prince Albert hairstyle, and wearing European buckled shoes. His posture models popular photo studio portraits of the time. Kalighat painters ridiculed these vain babus as foppish nouveau riche.
A vertically oriented gum tempera and graphite painting depicts a seated man with light-yellow skin. Facing slightly right on a black chair, he has smooth black hair, a mustache, and wears silver hoop earrings. He holds a tall hookah in his raised hand. Clad in a teal lower garment and red cloth fringed with silver patterns, his legs are crossed. Bold outlines and shimmering highlights define him against a plain background.

English Babu (Native Indian Clerk) Holding a Hookah

c. 1890

Eastern India, Bengal, Kolkata, Kalighat

See Also

Visually Similar by AI

Contact Us

The information about this object, including provenance, may not be currently accurate. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please fill out the appropriate request form linked below:

Update or Correct Artwork Information

Imagery or Rights for Non-Open-Access Artworks

Report a Website Issue

Further Questions About This Artwork