Balthazar Solvyns
Frans Balthazar Solvyns (also Baltazar, Frans-Balthasar, Solvijns; 6 July 1760 – 10 October 1824) was a Flemish marine painter and journeyman artist, who lived in Calcutta (presently Kolkata) between 1791 and 1803. He is considered one of the early pioneers in the field of print-making in India, along with Thomas Daniell.[1][2][3]
His collection of etchings provide a portrait of Calcutta's 18th century history, and the people of Bengal, including their occupations, festivals, and daily life. He was appointed as the Captain of the Port in recognition of his accomplishments as an artist by William I of the Netherlands.[3][4]
Biography
He was born in Antwerp in 1760. He pursued a career of marine painter until political unrest in Europe caused him to depart for Calcutta in 1791 to seek better fortune. He initially worked as journeyman artist, and in 1794, he announced a plan for A Collection of Two Hundred and Fifty Coloured Etchings: Descriptive of the Manners, Customs and Dresses of the Hindoos. His depictions covered castes and their professions, costumes, means of transportation, modes of smoking, fakirs, musical instruments, and festivals.[1][4]
He published his first collection of about 250 etchings in Calcutta in 1796, and then many more in 1799. However, his Solvyn's project was a financial failure, forcing him to return to France in 1803.[3] In France, he redid his etchings in a French language edition titled Les Hindous, and published in Paris in four volumes between 1808 and 1812. Here too, he failed commercially like in Calcutta due to unrest of the Napoleonic wars, high cost of production, and lack of interest among local populace.[3]
After the Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed in 1814, he returned to his birthplace Antwerp, and died there in 1824.[1][3][4]
Legacy
Solvyns had little modern recognition until recent portrayals in articles, journals, and a publication - A Portrait of the Hindus: Balthazar Solvyns & the European Image of India 1760-1824 (Oxford University Press, 2004) by Robert L. Hardgrave, Jr., Temple Professor Emeritus in the Humanities at the The University of Texas[5] along with co-author Stephen A. Slawek.[4] A systematic use of his works has been made in the late 1980s, including reproduction of all of his etchings on the internet.
Works
- Les Hindoûs.
- A Collection of Two Hundred and Fifty Coloured Etchings: Descriptive of the Manners, Customs and Dresses of the Hindoos.
- A Catalogue of 250 Coloured Etchings; Descriptive of the Manners, Customs, Character, Dress, and Religious Ceremonies of the Hindoos.
- The Costume of Indostan.[4]
Further reading
- Portrait of the Hindus: Balthazar Solvyns & the European image of India, 1760-1824. Oxford University Press in association with Mapin Pub., 2004. ISBN 0-19-522041-2, 9780195220414
External links
- http://www.laits.utexas.edu/solvyns-project/index.html Solvyns Project] at University of Texas
- A Portrait of Black Town - Baltazard Solvyns in Calcutta
- Musical Instruments of North India
- An Early Portrayal of the Sikhs
- Boats of Bengal
- Cambridge Journals - The Journal of Asian Studies
- A Portrait of the Hindus: Balthazar Solvyns & the European Image of India 1760-1824
- - Illustrations de Les Hindous / Frans Balthazar Solvyns, grav. ; Georg Bernhard Depping, Frans Balthazar Solvyns, aut. du texte
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "SOLVYNS, Frans Balthazar - Les Hindous, ou description de leurs moeurs, coutumes et ceremonies". Find-a-book.com. Retrieved 2012-02-10.
- ↑ "Baltazard Solvyns in Calcutta - 1791-1804". Laits.utexas.edu. Retrieved 2012-02-10.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 "SOLVYNS, Baltazar - Les Hindous - p.140-141" (PDF). Retrieved 2012-02-10.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 The Solvyns Project - Robert L. Hardgrave, Jr. - The University of Texas at Austin
- ↑ "Robert L. Hardgrave, Jr. - Temple professor Emeritus in the Humanities, Government and Asian Studies". Webspace.utexas.edu. Retrieved 2012-02-10.