Budhha as Medicant 1914

Abanindranath Tagore created this watercolour of the Buddha, robed and holding a bowl, sometime in the early 20th century. It’s interesting how Tagore simplifies the form, boiling it down to gentle washes of earth tones. You can almost feel the water and pigment mingling on the page. The texture of the robe is built up with layers, allowing for a semi-transparent effect that gives the figure a ghostly, ethereal quality. Look closely at the begging bowl; the way it’s rendered is almost abstract, like a scribble, yet it perfectly conveys the form. It reminds me of some of the quick, intuitive marks I make in my own work. It’s these little moments that bring a painting to life, when the hand of the artist is most apparent. Tagore's approach to colour and form reminds me of the work of Odilon Redon, with its mystical sensibility and dreamlike imagery. Ultimately, art is about seeing – or feeling – things in a new light.