Art
The Maharaja's Visit to The Guru's Darbar: August Schoefft's Masterpiece
by SANDEEP SINGH BRAR
The painting by Viennese artist, August Schoefft, of Maharaja Ranjit Singh sitting in devotion on a balcony overlooking the Darbar Sahib complex at Amritsar is both stunning and full of details.
Painted over a century and a half ago at the zenith of the Sikh Empire, it is one of the most important paintings from that era.
Spending over a year in the Sikh Empire, Schoefft painted portraits and scenes while gathering the material to later produce his two most well-known works.
Epics on a grand scale, but also with meticulous detail, Schoeffts paintings of The Court of Lahore and Maharaja Ranjit Singh
at Darbar Sahib are widely admired today as the definitive depictions of the Sikh Royal Court at the height of its power under the Lion of Punjab.
What may surprise many is the fact that Schoefft’s grand painting is a work of historical imagination and artistic license. Having arrived at the Sikh Empire two years after the death of the Emperor of Punjab, Schoefft never had the opportunity to meet Maharaja Ranjit Singh or witness this scene at Darbar Sahib.
Schoefft's painting is analogous to a well written historical novel where the author researches an era to get the details of the times correct and then uses his creative imagination to populate the pages with believable characters in plausible circumstances, all set in historical context.
In a similar manner, Schoefft used his vivid imagination to portray a scene that he never saw but one where, as a keen observer, artist and historian, he effectively blends reality with imagination into a cohesive grand epic on canvas that is both believable and realistic in its rendition.
Scroll to the bottom of the sikhchic.com HomePage to see the full painting.
Check out the new Exhibit to explore this epic painting, and to learn about August Schoefft, the artist, and his relationship with the Sikhs; eyewitness accounts of the Sikh Emperor, Ranjit Singh, in his daily religious observance, including a historic visit to the Darbar Sahib. As well, examine detailed write-ups on the various elements that make up Schoefft’s grand painting.
To view the Exhibit, visit SikhMuseum.com
[Sandeep Singh Brar is the curator of SikhMuseum.com and the creator of the world’s first Sikh website, sikhs.org.]
August 9, 2011
Conversation about this article
1: Shani Kaur Singh (Mohali, Punjab), August 09, 2011, 9:28 AM.
Wow! Love it! Thank you for bringing it to the fore.
2: Sangat Singh (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia), August 09, 2011, 2:46 PM.
Another slice of history. I remember there was this painting - or a copy of it - in the Harmandar Sahib Sikh museum. I am not sure if it is still displayed there after June 1984, when the museum was torched by Indira Gandhi's goons.
3: Devinder Singh Mangat (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada), August 11, 2011, 12:23 PM.
It is a masterpiece of much historical value. We must preserve these rare pieces of art and history.
4: Gurdip Kaur (U.S.A.), August 17, 2011, 12:47 AM.
Truly a masterpiece.