A Kashmiri nautch girl with a hookah

Details

Mortimer M. Menpes (1860-1938)
A Kashmiri nautch girl with a hookah
indistinctly signed 'Mortimer M ...' (lower right)
oil on panel
11 x 7¼ in. (28 x 18.5 cm.)

Literature

Joachim K. Bautze, Interaction of Cultures, Indian and Western Painting 1780 - 1910, The Ehrenfeld Collection, Alexandria, Virginia, 1998, p. 198, no. 51, illustrated.

Exhibited

London, Spink, A Journey through India, Pictures of India by British Artists, London, 9 October - 1 November 1996, exhibition catalogue, no. 57, p. 56, illustrated.

Special notice

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Lot Essay

Menpes was born in Australia. He settled in London in the 1880s and became a protége of James McNeill Whistler. In 1902-1903, he was commissioned to cover the Delhi Durbar by the Pall Mall Gazette, The Illustrated London News and Punch. After completing his assignment, he travelled extensively in northern India. He was captivated by the nautch or dancing girls of whom he made several paintings. Menpes held many solo exhibitions in England including special exhibitions on 'India', 'Burmah' and 'Cashmere'.

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