India · Painting / Miniature Painting

Patna Kalam Company School Watercolor Painting

पटना कलम (Patna Kalam); पटना शैली

A 19th-century school of small watercolors made in Patna, Bihar, for British and Indian patrons, showing everyday trades, festivals and portraits in a naturalistic mix of Mughal and European manners. Painters worked directly with the brush, without a preliminary pencil sketch, and used a black ink called kajli seahi for outlines.

Risk level: Extinct · Not inscribed

Alternate Names
Patna Qalam; Company painting of Patna; Patna school
Geographic Center
Patna, Bihar
Estimated Origin
Flourished in the 19th century as a Company-school workshop tradition.
Cultural Function
Commissioned portraits, trade and festival scenes and botanical drawings for patrons, including British officials such as the Impey family.
Primary Materials
Paper; watercolors; kajli seahi (lamp-black ink)
Process Overview
Painted directly with the brush, no pencil under-drawing; outlines in kajli seahi; washes of color built up.
Contemporary Applications
Revival and teaching attempts; collections in museums
Notable Practitioners
Sewak Ram; Shiva Lal; Shiva Dayal Lal (19th-century masters named in the literature)
Key References
Wikipedia, 'Patna school of painting' ; museum catalogues of Company painting (Impey commissions of natural-history subjects) ; Bihar art-history literature
Verification Status
Desk-Researched

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