Many Rare Oil Paintings on Canvas of the Past are No More with Us

Dr. V. Jeyaraj, Director, Hepzibah Institute of Heritage Conservation, 21, V.O.C. Street, M.G.R. Nagar, Chennai-600 078 is working with a research project sponsored by the Nehru Trust under the Small Study and Research Grant entitled Survey of Oil Paintings on Canvas and Their Conservation Status in Tamilnadu. He is at this project for the past 18 months and has survey around 300 oil paintings on canvas in Chennai and in the districts. Since the grant covers only Rs. 15000/-, even though there are many paintings in the districts the researcher is not able to access to the paintings. Many are interested in helping the researcher to take details and photograph them. But some are not interested to allow the researcher to study them and take photograph. The study has revealed that many photographs we have lost. This study was only undertaken to preserve what ever paintings are available in this State. By listing them in a report makes the owners to keep them preserved. The Hepzibah Institute of Heritage Conservation is trying to restore the paintings with the assistance from the Government of Tamil Nadu or and the Government of India for posterity.

The very bad state of affairs is that the paintings were not cared by some of the institutions. Many organisation have kept the paintings in very good condition.

The Madras Literary Society had the painting of Mr. Strange and it is not available. The Presidency College had some paintings. But now most of them are lost. Many of the Christian Institutions had lost them. Many Churches had the paintings. But as they were damaged by handling or negligence and they have been replaced by modern digital photographs. Many of the old paintings had been sold off for a small throw away prices. They are in the hands of the antique collectors, who preserve them for posterity.

Chennai has over 250 paintings and many institutions like Raj Bhavan, ChennaGovernment Museum, Chennai; Fort Museum, Chennai; Government Ophthalmic Hospital, Chennai;  University of Madras; DGP Office; Madras Christian College, Tambaram; Freemasons Hall; Cosmopolitan Club, Chennai; Ameer Mahal; C.P. Ramasamy Iyer Foundation; Hotel Connemara;