The Ganges at Benares

Description

Previously part of private collections and featured in international auction houses; historically connected to the artist's prolific period in India.

Historical context

Walter Langhammer, an Austrian artist who fled the rising tide of Nazism in Europe to find sanctuary in India, became a pivotal force in the Bombay Art Society. In this evocative watercolor, Langhammer captures the soul of Benares with a breathless, expressionistic energy. His brushwork does not merely record the architectural majesty of the ghats; it vibrates with the humid atmosphere and the ancient pulse of the river. Having mentored many of the founding members of the Progressive Artists Group, Langhammer's work reflects a beautiful synthesis of European Impressionist techniques and a deep, reverent fascination for the Indian landscape. The temples are rendered with fluid grace, suggesting a city that exists as much in the realm of the spiritual as it does in stone and water.