Where can I see Lord Dufferin and the Supreme Council of Government of India?

Lord Dufferin and the Supreme Council of Government of India is held by Cleveland Museum of Art.

What movement is Lord Dufferin and the Supreme Council of Government of India?

Lord Dufferin and the Supreme Council of Government of India is associated with Impressionism.

Artwork

Lord Dufferin and the Supreme Council of Government of India

Lord Dufferin and the Supreme Council of Government of India is a photography by the Impressionist artist Raja Deen Dayal. It dates from 1887 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.

About this work

The photographer, Raja Deen Dayal, would also go to Shimla to take pictures of the officials, which helped him get clients.

This painting shows a group of people sitting around a table, with Lord Dufferin at the center.
The scene is formal and staged. It was taken in Shimla, where the British government would move each summer to escape the heat.
The photographer, Raja Deen Dayal, would also go to Shimla to take pictures of the officials, which helped him get clients.
You can learn more about this type of photography by looking at the work of artist: Raja Deen Dayal (Indian, 1844–1905)

Overview

This 1885 photograph captures a staged meeting of the Supreme Council of Government of India, presided over by Lord Dufferin, the British Viceroy of India, in Shimla.

Subject & Meaning

At the center, Lord Dufferin (1826–1902) is flanked by council members in a formal, posed arrangement, highlighting the colonial hierarchy and Deen Dayal's access to British elite subjects.

Technique & Style

The photograph's formal composition and staging reflect Deen Dayal's adeptness at capturing official, high-society portraits, characteristic of his work with the British colonial elite.

History & Provenance

Taken in Shimla, where the British government summered to escape Calcutta's heat, the photograph led to Deen Dayal's appointment as the viceroy's photographer, expanding his clientele among the British upper class.

Context

Part of Deen Dayal's annual migrations to Shimla to photograph officials, this work exemplifies the intersection of colonial power dynamics and the photographer's strategic pursuit of elite clientele.