tour 1 of 8
The Art of Peace: Paintings by the poet Rabindranath Tagore
The Art of Peace: Paintings by the poet Rabindranath Tagore
'…our family has
been a confluence of
three cultures, Hindu, Mohammedan and British.'
(Rabindranath Tagore, Hibbert Lectures, Oxford, 1930)
Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) is the most famous South Asian
literary figure of the twentieth century. He was a poet, writer,
statesman, educator and musician whose work and achievements earned
him worldwide respect.
Born in Bengal, in eastern India, he was a strong supporter of
Bengali unity and opposed the region's division at the end of the
British Empire.
He was best known as a composer and poet and was the first Asian
to win the Nobel Prize for literature. However, when already 60
years old, he began to paint and created a body of work that made
him one of South Asia's great modern painters.
This tour explores Tagore's life and a selection of his
artworks.
Illustration: This signed photograph of
Rabindranath Tagore was donated to the British Museum by Professor
Tony Stewart in 2003 and was probably taken when he was in his
seventies.