The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of April 21, 2024
Fancy Group, Indore I
1886
(Indian, 1844–1905)
Image: 12.4 x 19.9 cm (4 7/8 x 7 13/16 in.); Paper: 12.4 x 19.9 cm (4 7/8 x 7 13/16 in.)
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 2016.266.34
Location: not on view
Description
Entertainments at “fancy dress” or costume parties often included amateur theatricals or tableaux vivants—static scenes drawn from literature, history, or artworks. Here, Deen Dayal captured three moments distilled from a popular novel or play. The guests—all middle or upper class—perform as characters ranging from the working class to ladies and gentlemen. The woman holding a bucket labeled “Emma Brown of Margate” was likely playing a fishwife selling her husband’s catch. Because the photographic technology of the time required strong daylight, the photographs would have been made on a separate occasion, not at the party.- 1887 or 1888Studio of Raja Deen Dayal, sold to commissioner (identity unknown)1970s–2015Walter Clode [1929–2022], Pershore, England, sold or consigned to Prahlad Bubbar Indian and Islamic Art, London, England2015–16(Prahlad Bubbar Indian and Islamic Art, London, England), sold to The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OHDecember 5, 2016–The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
- Raja Deen Dayal: The King of Indian Photographers. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (April 23, 2023-February 4, 2024).
- {{cite web|title=Fancy Group, Indore I|url=false|author=Raja Deen Dayal|year=1886|access-date=21 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2016.266.34