Artwork
One of eleven paintings of trades and occupations
One of eleven paintings of trades and occupations is a gouache painting by the Impressionist artist Unknown. It dates from 1870 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. This gouache painting on mica depicts a figure engaged in a specific trade, forming part of a series that illustrates various occupations.
About this work
Overview
This gouache painting on mica depicts a figure engaged in a specific trade, forming part of a series that illustrates various occupations. The work belongs to a group of eleven similar pieces, each portraying a different professional activity, and exemplifies a distinctive Indian artistic practice that catered to colonial collectors.
Subject & Meaning
The central figure is shown actively performing a livelihood, offering a visual record of everyday work in southern or eastern India. By focusing on a single occupation, the image conveys both the dignity of labor and the cultural specificity of the trade within its regional context.
Technique & Style
Executed in opaque gouache on a thin sheet of mica, the painting combines vivid pigments with the mineral's natural sheen. The smooth, reflective surface of mica enhances the colors and lends a luminous quality, while the brushwork remains precise, emphasizing details of clothing and tools associated with the depicted job.
History & Provenance
Mica paintings originated in southern and eastern India during the British colonial period, when the material’s novelty attracted European buyers. These works were exported in substantial numbers to England, where they were collected as exotic souvenirs. The present piece likely entered a private or institutional collection through such trade networks.
Context
The series belongs to a broader tradition of Indian mica paintings produced in thematic sets—ranging from deities and wildlife to architecture and festivals. Such collections catered to British tastes for ethnographic and decorative objects, reflecting the colonial appetite for visual documentation of Indian life.
Artist & collection
Domestic Scene
Giacomo and Cardinal Marco, investing Andrea, Abbot of San Zeno, with his Benefice
The Nymph of Fontainebleau
Portrait of a Woman
Madonna and Child with Saints in the Enclosed Garden
Venus and Minerva
Family Group of Four on Sofa
Wall painting from Room H of the Villa of P. Fannius Synistor at Boscoreale
One of twenty-four paintings of South Indian castes and occupations.
Acrobats
The Hook-swinging Festival (Chadak parvan)
A garlanded Shaivite, ascetic
Dhumavati
A naked hunter
Travelling entertainers
Krishna Steals the Clothes of the Cowgirls (Gopis) (recto), from a Kalighat album
Hanuman and Ravana
Kusha, Lava and Hanuman