Unidentified photographer 1900s Untitled (Portrait of a Woman in Gray Sari and Veil)
Gelatin silver print, hand colored 15 x 10.9 cm (5 7/8 x 4 5/16 in.) (image) 15 x 10.9 cm (5 7/8 x 4 5/16 in.) (paper) 16.3 x 12 cm (6 7/16 x 4 3/4 in.) (mount)
This hand-tinted portrait photograph is a modern example of a tradition in Indian painting that extends back to the mid-1800s. Having a photograph hand painted required an extra charge, but made the portraits more lifelike and endowed them with the status of a luxury item, akin to painted portraiture.
