Explore the works of a father-daughter duo at this unique exhibition in Colaba

In the forgotten annals of early Bombayrsquos art history there are few names that deserve a mention as much as the fatherdaughter duo of Rustom Siodia and Cumi Dallas Their lives and work left a lasting impression on Indian art Opening today the exhibition Resemblance at the Chatterjee amp Lal gallery brings to light an unexplored series of works by the duoGallerist and curatorMortimer Chatterjee states ldquoIt is usually the Progressive Artistrsquo Group who are in the limelight for their work What it does is that it leaves out a large swathe of time from the cityrsquos artistic journeyrdquo From this time emerges Rustom Siodia born in 1881 to an affluent Parsi family He grew up in Bombay central to the British Empire in India It was also a city with a newly established premier arts school Sir JJ School of Arts that opened in 1857Rustom Siodia Untitled Landscape 1924ldquoHe attended the Sir JJ School of Arts in 1905 and later became the second Indian mdash and the first Parsi mdash to study at the Royal Academy of Arts in London That training shaped his perspective of the human body or the landscape When you look at his lines or colour palette it is very different from other Indian artistsrdquo the gallerist addsIn London he met with the famed American artist John Singer Sargent Sargentrsquos influence looms largely on Siodiarsquos works says cofounder Tara Lal ldquoBoth in terms of portraiture and palette there are influences of Sargent The way he approaches the sky and the light in the skies has a luminescent feeling that you donrsquot get with other artists in India during that period His monsoon landscapes shine and have a wonderful aura to themrdquoUntitled Study for historical painting of Magi and heightened young woman 1929For the gallery the aesthetics historical context and city connect meant that acquiring these artworks was essential In 2019 the artistsrsquo estate coordinated with the gallery to put out the first exhibition of Siodiarsquos works Realism and Fantasy ldquoSiodia used to live near Gowalia Tank at Kemps Cornerrdquo Chatterjee says adding ldquoThey also had a place in Kalanagar a setup in the artistrsquos colony For a while he had a studio in Jogeshwari as wellrdquo Chatterjee reveals of the artistrsquos city connectionWith such a close connection did the city feature in Siodiarsquos work ldquoTill the early 1920s you get street scenes and buildings reflective of the city But by the late 1920s his attention shifted to genre paintings and historical work They would begin to reflect ancient Persian landscapes and mythologiesrdquo says ChatterjeeRustom Siodia Cumi Dallas Pics CourtesyHeirs of the ArtistA high point of the artistrsquos career was the chance to work on the murals of the newly constructed Viceregal Lodge now Rashtrapati Bhavan in Delhi ldquoThe students from Sir JJ School of Arts under then director Gladstone Solomon won the competition Siodia is one of the few artists who went up to Delhi to paint those muralsrdquo Chatterjee sharesTara Lal and Mortimer ChatterjeeTo focus on Siodia alone would do injustice to his daughter Cumi Dallas A prominent name of the Bombay Revivalist movement her journey was independent and distinct from that of her fatherrsquos She would later marry architect Homi Dallas an encouraging influence Lal adds Chatterjee notes ldquoThe title of the exhibition is a bit cheeky because there are as many dissonances as there are resonances between the duordquoA section from Rustom Siodia A Great Art Misunderstood 1933 right Cumi Dallas Untitled Portrait of a woman wearing jewelleryldquoAs a student of JM Ahivasi she brought a synthesis of different trends ranging from Ajantarsquos caves mural paintings and Indian miniatures to Western forms into the style later known as the Bombay Revivalrdquo Chatterjee emphasises The irony is not lost on the gallerist who shares ldquoIn the late 1920s Siodia would write letters to the editor of The Times of India against the now developing Bombay Revival Style and The Bengal SchoolrdquoUntitled Forest clearing Pics CourtesyChatterjee amp LalThe Bombay Revivalist Movement Lal reveals would unconsciously influence the generation to come ldquoAs a gallery we always look to take the story forward The first exhibition was an introduction to the legacy of Siodia as an artist This one brings to light their connection as father and daughterrdquo concludes LalFrom Today 12 pm to 5 pm till August 24 At Chatterjee amp Lal Arthur Bunder Road Colaba