AA Raiba: The artist who charted his own path

The art of Master Abdul Aziz Raiba (1922–2016), despite being deeply immersed within the traditional art styles, brings forth a version of quintessential eclectic Indian modernist in several different ways.

As such, Raiba was trained in Indian miniature painting style at the Sir JJ School of Art under JM Ahivasi (1901–1973), who was inspired by the techniques and style of the Indian miniature paintings of Rajasthani and Pahadi schools. This brings forth the fact that apart from generally following the Bengal School (or “Revivalism”), there existed further innovative possibilities of looking and studying various schools of late medieval miniature paintings as exemplified in the curriculum initiated by Captain WE Gladstone Solomon, the principal of Sir JJ School of Art, Bombay. Gladstone, in 1929 started a special class to promote Indian miniature painting and GH Nagarkar was appointed as its teacher under whom Ahivasi studied and developed his style and technique. This thick, opaque watercolour style was significantly different from the hazy wash technique developed by Abanindranath Tagore of the Bengal School. Raiba was a student of Ahivasi from 1942 to ’46 who nurtured his expertise particularly in miniature painting and in Bengal School generally. However, Raiba integrated into his unique personal style certain elements of western modernism and to a limited extend academic naturalism to form an eclectic modernism.

The art of Master Raiba emblematically reveals this historical context of the multistranded synthesis within the Indian modernism where the unique fusion of Indo-Islamic traditions, European academic naturalism, the Bengal School and European modernity lent an amazing richness and depth. It is interesting that modern art that originated in the art centers of Europe took roots in India upsetting the supremacy of the British academic realism and the Bengal School beginning in 1920s through 40s. However, unlike the rebellious European avant-garde modern art, which overthrew the academic neoclassicism, took roots in India ironically through the conservative canonical art school education, and through the emigre artists and critics from the west, which perhaps can be called as the early formation of the Indian academic modernism. Interestingly, this modernism was neither revolutionary nor did it reject any of the other existing artistic styles; western naturalism or the romantic revivalist pictorial mannerisms. On its own accord the traditional pictorial vocabulary although was no more a living tradition, persisted in the art school curriculum of the country through initiation into the styles of miniature traditions and the watered-down versions of Bengal School, side by side with the European academic naturalism and modernism. Raiba amalgamated these different strands in his practice as an art student.

A contemporary of Bombay’s (now Mumbai) more famous artists like MF Husain, SH Raza, AH Ara and FN Souza, Raiba quickly denied any group association, and asserted his independence while opting to remain a solitary loner. Pursuing his artistic quest though six decades, his art practice display his versatility, which is evident as he chose to master different mediums and materials such as murals, painting on jute and on overlapping glasses (a technique where paint is applied over multiple layers of glasses lending a three-dimensional effect), apart from making calligraphy in Urdu and English, serigraphs, innumerable sketches and drawings.

Raiba’s landscape paintings often exude bright palate against dark backgrounds, yet at instances archive amazing softness in the blending of colours, employing ingenious perspectives, and abstraction. In all these, his decisive use of the line remains as a distinct vocabulary. The strong outlines that delineate the contours of his imagery, especially in his drawings became an individualistic attribute of his art. In the works on display, the sharply defined, stylised and simplified forms, are comparable to Guler/Kangra schools of miniature paintings in their easy, undulating, sharp and severe linear clarity. Raiba’s lines however are thicker and angular making his art nearer to modernists such as to certain phases of Pablo Picasso (‘Girl Before a Mirror’, oil on canvas, 1932) or an artist like George Keyt (his ‘Krishna and Gopis’). These similarities are rather catalytic rather than decisive. Further, his early training in Arabic calligraphy in more than one way lent him the absolute formal control and precision, which enabled him to create purity of the linear articulation.

Raiba’s use of grids often appeared in his preparatory process of making a painting is derived from his strong academic background. This process is a widely used artistic technique for transferring and scaling drawings with utmost accuracy. It is within the grid that the artist laid out the drawings. Such reference drawings of the artist displayed in the exhibition are overlaid over the images with grids of equal squares, which are made to be duplicated on the canvas or on wall. Raiba utilised gridded layouts to meticulously plan compositions on paper and then transferred them on to the surface prepared for painting to ensure precise proportions. This facilitated to transfer small sketches into large surfaces of the murals/paintings with accuracy. Thus the grid acted as an interface to organise space, colour, and forms within a composition.

From the larger oeuvre of Raiba’s body of works, what stands-out, and which are part of this show is a set of about ten drawing on the obverse and reverse sides of the paper, and these represent a classical narrative of lovers in separation and union. The compositional layout of most of these drawings mounts the heroine (nayika) more prominently. As such the hero (nayaka) is depicted only in a couple of compositions. In a few works nayika is lonely, and her romantic disposition of viraha or separation are depicted as swooning with raised arms, attended by the attendants (sakhis). In some drawings, she is in conversation with parrots, perhaps trying to distract herself from the loneliness or requesting the bird to carry her message to the nayaka.

In two compositions in her viraha, she is languorously lying down gazing the moon, attended by sakhis which are direct adoptions from certain schools of Rajput miniature paintings. In a few she is gazing at herself at a mirror held by the sakhi. In some of the drawings she is face to face with the hero (nayaka), ardently looking at each other or in another they are in a poignant sexual union. It is significant to point out that the sensuality of the theme in the exhibited drawings is deftly handled by the artist balancing naturalism and idealisation, but never turning to become immodest. While there are a few simplified landscape motifs especially trees or a flower vase, the delineations of simplified geometrical shapes of architectural settings are delightful details in the compositions. While this set of drawing is very ambitiously prepared, it is not clear if these were translated into paintings or not.

Raiba’s son, Najeeb Raiba points out that, “We belong to a middle class Kokani Muslim community where my father had to struggle as an artist to find means to support the family…” Talking about the traditional thematic of the paintings he writes that, “He was inspired by romantic theme-based poetry; by Hindi poet Keshavdas. He painted 27 paintings for his one man show at Attic Art Gallery on the theme “Baramasa of Keshavdas” in 1966. His paintings were in miniature style depicting the romantic journey of twelve months of the year, where the Nayika would prevail upon Nayak not to leave her alone. This painting beautifully expresses complete harmony of man and his environment, enjoying each season gracefully in festival expressing joy through dance and music. …. In 1969 he paid homage to Great Urdu poet Mirza Ghalib with an execution of calligraphy while interweaving the words of poet’s name and representing them to appear as red roses.” (‘Unfinished Journey of Life, in Shri. AA Raiba: The Indian Master Painter, A Retrospective Exhibition of His Paintings’, December 15, 2016 to January 1, 2017, Catalogue, Nehru Centre Art Gallery, Mumbai).

The narrative series is in contrast with the quick landscape sketches primarily done during his Kashmir sojourn (1957 – 1959). These are drawn spontaneously, with impressionistic and gentle care with masterly skill. The trees are languorous, structurally and mimetically accurate, but are abstracted in the spirit of modernism, while the hills and rocks are sturdy and at instances shaded to enhance the material presence. The artist definitively grasps the specific shape and character of each particular form, and through minimal abstract means captures them evoking the characteristic of the objects.

Deeply rooted in the romantic tradition of Urdu poetry, the structural clarity of Arabic calligraphy, the conglomerate of artistic elements from the eastern and western traditions, and articulating the modernist tendencies of abstracting the forms, Master Raiba undoubtedly is a modernist eclectic artist par excellence. The noted abstract painter Prabhakar Kolte reminiscences about the personality of the artist thus, “He was like any other common man. His dress was simple but reflecting his social status. He was neither talkative nor over reactive but rather silent and almost lost in his own self. Seen as if he was in a constant search within. I never saw him in hurry but walking with apt pace as if he was carrying in his mind a very auspicious thought which he wanted to deliver to someone. His head was always covered with a fur-cap that would reflect his religion but whenever I got a chance to speak to him, I realised that he was a soft-spoken human being, caring for the humanity and its quality. In our first inter-active dialogue we spoke to each other about the Art and Religion. The zest of his expression in words was: “Humanity is the major religion, rest are parts of it, including personal religion and art. One should imbibe the major and practice the minor.”

Kolte further adds that, “These words of him would carve a permanent niche in the head of anyone who has a sense of listening worthy things…” (‘A Painter Who Walked on His Own Path’, ibid).

 On view till June 21