Vintage raja ravi varma original ma laxmi oleograph (embellshed)

Raja Ravi Varma has brought Hindu deities and mythological narratives to the masses through his exquisite oleographs. This iconic oleograph portrays the radiant Goddess Lakshmi standing atop a blooming pink lotus, amidst lush vegetation, and is accompanied by swans and a majestic elephant. According to Hindu mythology, Goddess Lakshmi is the embodiment of beauty, wealth, and prosperity. She has four hands symbolizing abundance, purity, fertility, and auspiciousness. Her two upper hands are holding a lotus, symbolizing purity, enlightenment, and divine birth. Her lower right hand in Varad Mudra represents generosity and the granting of boons, at the same time her lower left hand in Abhay Mudra indicates protection and dispelling of fear.

The symbolism in Hindu mythology is very fundamental, as even the majestic elephant depicted in the composition carries a mark of good fortune and abundance. Overall, this beautiful artwork captures the essence of Hindu mythology and showcases the skills of the artist to bring such a subject to life.

This is a limited edition capsule collection of original oleographs/ chromo lithographs from the 1920’s and 1930’s created at the original Raja Ravi Verma Printing Press. This collection of paintings was originally made by Raja Ravi Verma and artists like CS Ramanujam. The oleographs are embellished with original delicate Japanese paper silk and Zari work in real gold and silver which was done by artists in the same period. These oleopgraphs were created in limited numbers and thus each artwork is limited to only 1 in availability with us. Varma used oleographs on paper, a type of lithography that uses oil paints on paper to make his work available to the masses. He eventually sold the press to one of the Germans. The stone-printing procedure allows exact brushstrokes and patterns to be replicated on a large scale with multitudes of tones and diverse colour palette.