Toilet

Hemendranath Majumdar became famous for his female forms, even though he was a recognized portraitist and a good landscape painter. The figure of the woman is laden with nuanced eroticism. The painting shows a partially dressed woman obviously from an affluent background seen from the rich textiles and jewellery. But it is clear that in the painting, Majumdar is romanticizing the female figure from the artist’s treatment of skin tone, texture of textiles and hair and the subtly suggestive pose. The painting also shows Majumdar’s deft handling of watercolours to achieve an ethereal effect. At the same time, one cannot completely deny that Majumdar has kept the male gaze in mind.