Gertrude Sinha Hirsch

Gertrude Sinha (née Hirsch) (15 June 1911 – 5 September 2011) was an Austrian-born artist and children's art educator who lived the majority of her life in India.

Gertrude Hirsch was born on 15 June 1911 in Vienna, Austria.^[1] Her brother, Leopold was one year older than she was, and they grew up as a tight-knit family in the Landstraße District.^[1] Her father, Markus Hirsch, was a businessman and her mother, Margarethe Hirsch (née Rebenwurzel) supported the family through her domestic labour at home. As a child, Gertrude was educated in German, Italian, French, and English.^[2]

Sinha demonstrated a talent for art as a child, and in October 1926 she was enrolled into Vienna's Kunstgewerbeschule / University of Applied Arts (now die Angewandte).^[1]

Sinha was seen by her teachers to be a talented and hard-working student. Her student transcript cites that she has:

"...an exceptional talent for rhythmic creation. [She] had an intense need to engage deeply with the problems of modern creation. (Prof Franz Cižek). Amazingly industrious, hard working and full of fantasy-talented (Prof Viktor Schufinsky). Special talent in graphics, very favourably predisposed and exceptionally striving (Prof Dr Josef Hoffmann). Very serious, very tasteful, she has the strength to complete a given task, distinct sense for the line and proportion, good drawer using nature. Tasteful in her use of colour, she is an innovative and a sophisticated graphic artist (Prof Wilhelm Müller-Hofmann)".^[1]

On 23 June 1936, Sinha attended her graduation ceremony from the University of Applied Arts. During the ceremony she was commended for her graphic works and illustrations produced under the direction of Professor Wilhelm Müller Hofmann.^[3]

During her art studies, Sinha developed an interest in theosophy and joined a Theosophical Society Lodge in Vienna around 1927. There she learnt to practice meditation and became vegetarian.^[4]

In August 1936, George Arundale, the President of the Theosophical Society, and his wife, Rukmini Devi Arundale, visited Geneva for the Theosophical Society's World Congress.^[5] Following the Congress, they embarked on an "Eastern Tour" through Europe which commenced in Vienna, where they stayed for four days.^[6][7][8] It was during this time that Sinha met Rukmini Devi who, two years prior ,had founded the Annie Besant Memorial School in Madras (now Chennai).^[9] Devi was looking for teachers and Sinha was offered a job as an art teacher at the school.^[2] Sinha travelled to Madras in December 1936.

Sinha was employed as an art teacher at the Annie Besant Memorial School in Adyar, Madras by the Theosophical Society from January 1937 to 1942.^[10] Whilst teaching at the school, she met Kiron Sinha,^[11] a Bengali artist who had trained at Rabindranath Tagore's Kala Bhavana in Santiniketan^[12] and who was working as an art teacher at Kalakshetra, a nearby institution, also set up by Devi.^[2][10][13] The couple married on 1 June 1939,^[10] in defiance of Kiron's father's objections, but with the blessing of Rabindranath Tagore.^[11]

In Madras, Gertrude gave educational talks about the techniques of painting and watercolour and sometimes played the piano on All India Radio.^[14]

In 1941, Kiron left teaching to work as a full-time independent artist,^[11][13][15] and Gertrude continued teaching in various jobs to financially support him, including working part-time a Training College in T. Nagar, Madras in 1942.^[10]

Not only did Sinha financially support her husband, but she also tutored him in anatomy and the use of oil paint, using the notes she had made during her own studies in Vienna. She advised him on perspective and they discussed the great European masters. These were important influences in Kiron's work and he acknowledged her role in his artistic development.^[16]

From February to April 1942 Sinha collaborated with her husband to produce a pair of murals titled "The Rhythm of Life"^[16] for the Students' Common Room in the Women's Christian College, Chennai.^[17][18][19] The murals remain on display.^[11] When the murals were painted, it was during a time of great upheaval and anxiety in Madras as there was fear of a Japanese attack on the city.^[20] On 12 April 1942, the Government of Madras advised the city's residents to evacuate the city; this led to mass panic, with 500,000 people leaving within one week.^[21] Gertrude and Kiron Sinha chose to remain in the city and continue their work on the murals. Of that time, Dr Elizabeth George, then a teacher at the Women's Christian College, and later the first Indian Principal of the College wrote:

"Sometimes when I look at these pictures and remember the events of the months when the artists were at work, transforming a blank white wall into a permanent stage, presenting and representing the rhythm of life in full swing, a queer sense of strangeness and mystery hangs over me - for those were days when suspense and fear, uncertainty and insecurity made the College atmosphere almost as tense as the atmosphere in the city and the country at large. But the artists worked on, in those critical weeks of February, March and April, with visible leisureliness except when the hand and the brush could not keep pace with the creative forces at work in them, in executing what the mind conceived or the eye perceived in imagination... That drama lives in the memory of those who had the privilege of watching them at work, now perched up on piles of packing cases giving full play to their brushes, now bent low on the floor mixing the paints, now standing together, gazing at the unfinished pictures on the wall and critically comparing them with the outline pictures on the paper spread out on the floor, now lost in thought and seeking inspiration, and occasionally relaxing and resting either on the swing or at the piano..."^[18]

On 9 June 1942, Sinha's parents, who were secular Jews, were deported by train from Vienna to Blagovshchina.^[22][23] Upon arrival, on 15 June 1942, they were shot.^[22] The day was Sinha's 31st birthday.

In 1943 Sinha obtained a job at Vidya Bhavan in Udaipur^[10] and the couple spent about a year working, painting, and travelling in Rajasthan.^[15]

By January 1944 they had moved to Lahore, where Sinha had taken up a position as Lecturer of Art at the University of Panjab's Fine Arts Department.^[10][13][24] The Head of Department was Anna Molka Ahmed, and fellow teachers in the Department included Esther Kehinkar (teacher), Nazrat Qureshi (demonstrator), and Sheila Prem Nath (demonstrator).^[24]

The couple's first and only child, Kamona (nicknamed Bulbul), was born in June 1945 in Mussoorie.^[25] This event prompted the new family to purchase land in Santiniketan in 1947 in order to settle down.^[13][15][16] For the first two years of Kamona's life, Gertrude and Kiron shifted between Lahore and Santiniketan as Gertrude remained in her job until May 1948,^[10] and Kiron started designing and building the house in Santiniketan.

During the tumultuous times of Partition, Gertrude remained in Lahore and lost many of her possessions, including her Austrian passport^[10] and some of Kiron's paintings.

In June 1948 the family moved to Shillong, then the capital of Assam (now Meghalaya) as Gertrude had secured a government-funded position as Industrial Art Expert to the Government of Assam in the Rural Development Directorate.^[10] There, she worked under the anthropologist Audrey Cantlie's husband, Thomas Hayley, Secretary and Director of Rural Development, Cottage Industries and Sericulture and Weaving ,and Secretary and Registrar of Co-operative Societies.^[10][11]

Sinha's work took her to many parts of Assam where she learnt about traditional Assamese design from temple carvings and artisans.^[26] She worked closely with the Assam Co-operative Cottage Industries Association,^[26] run by Lady Sigrid Emilia Hydari (née Westling), the recent widow of Muhammad Saleh Akbar Hydari, the last British-appointed Governor of Assam. Lady Hydari's Co-op had a focus on training people in traditional Indian folk art methods (such as preparing vegetable dyes, block printing, spinning, and weaving) to preserve that history.^[27] Sinha worked closely with the Co-op to develop designs for their weavers and block printers to produce items which were sold for export.^[26]

Whilst in Assam, Sinha and Kiron met local artist Asu Dev and his wife, Bela, and a strong and enduring friendship developed.^[28] The artists collaborated on projects, including the design and production of woodblocks.^[29]

Sinha's position in Shillong was disestablished in January 1950 due to funding cuts, and by April of that year the family had returned to Santiniketan.^[10]

After Sinha and Kiron settled in Santiniketan, they continued to design and carve woodblocks for many years. Sinha prepared her own vegetable dyes as well as using synthetic dyes, to print the woodblocks and produce highly sought-after printed textiles; wall hangings, housewares, and clothing.^{[2][30][31][32][33][34][35][36]}

In December 1950, the Delhi State Women's Section of Refugee Handicrafts organised an exhibition of handprinted textiles, which included designs that Sinha had produced during her tenure in Assam. The exhibition was opened by Indira Gandhi.^[31]

In October 1951, an exhibition of Kiron's paintings, and of Gertrude's textiles was held at the Institute of Foreign Languages, Davico's in Connaught Circus, Delhi. The exhibition was inaugurated by Mr Toyberg Frandzen, the Danish Ambassador to India. In a review of this exhibition, the art critic Charles Fabri wrote of Gertrude's textiles:

"They are exquisite, most unusual, admirably executed, and they have been selling on the first day like hot cakes."^[32]

It was at this exhibition that Sinha met Indira Gandhi and befriended her.^[37] Indira Gandhi became an admirer of Kiron's paintings and of Gertrude's hand-printed textiles, and purchased many works, which she displayed in public offices and gifted to foreign visitors and dignitaries.^[11][17][38] She inaugurated Kiron and Gertrude's exhibition at the Freemason's Hall in December 1952,^[39] a review of which included more glowing remarks by Charles Fabri about Gertrude's textiles:

"The hand-printed textiles on view are works of art, and no doubt about it. The blocks are designed and cut by hand by these two admirable artists, Mr and Mrs Sinha, based on folk art and combined into astonishingly original, striking, and attractive patterns. There is marked advance even from last year's work, and the variety of patterns is greater. Nothing like it has been produced anywhere, and Christmas shoppers will lose their hearts the moment they enter this fairyland of prints. The prices are reasonable."^[36]

From 1957 to April 1960, Sinha was affiliated with the Women's Co-op Industrial Home in Uday Villa, 24 Parganas, Kolkata.^[10] The Co-op was a small-scale training centre with the aim of reviving cottage and home industry by developing skills in refugee women from East Bengal. The Co-op was also the design centre of the All India Handicrafts Board, and it played host to various artists and studio potters.^[40] In March 1959, Sinha teamed up with Californian artist Jane Woolverton - whom she had met in Santiniketan - to hold an exhibition of Sinha's textile designs and Woolverton's paintings at Artistry House on Park Street in Kolkata.^[41][42] Of that exhibition, one newspaper reviewer said of Sinha's works:

"Mrs Sinha's works deserve particular mention as effective examples of printing of woven material. She has adapted exquisite designs from temple reliefs and statues as well as toys and has drawn her inspiration from various folk styles, primitive art and Santal village scenes. For multicoloured designs combination blocks have been used successfully and their application on batik techniques in one piece is of great interest. In her use of a variety of colour shades the principles of colour harmony are carefully observed. A wealth of pictorial suggestions add enrichment to her finished products whose completeness as works of art makes it difficult to think of a happier combination of artist, printer, and dyer."^[41]

By 1959, Kiron and Gertrude's woodblock prints and textile designs were well-known enough to be featured in the Encyclopedia of World Art^[43] and their sales were not restricted to India - they were stocked in Sydney by Marion Hall Best in her interior design shop.^[44]

During the 1950s, Sinha managed the household with minimal domestic help. Twice a week, she walked the 3.5km from the family's house in Rattanpally, Santiniketan to Bolpur Railway Station to do her grocery shopping at the market. She would then carry the shopping home on her head, or with the help of a village lady in her employment.^[45] To access water, the family had a well in their compound, from which Sinha, or their daughter Kamona, would draw water.^[45] The house in Santiniketan had no electricity and Sinha would cook the family's meals on a kerosene stove.^[45] She had domestic help with cleaning.^[2] Meanwhile, she ran her textile design studio from home,^[2][45] mixing up vegetable dyes and synthetic dyes in her small kitchen^[41] under the light of oil lamps.^[45]

In May 1960, Sinha took up a position as Art Mistress at the Dowhill School in Kurseong,^[10][46] where she remained for three years.

In July 1962 Sinha received her Indian citizenship.^[10]

During this time, Kiron continued to work independently as an artist in Santiniketan, with Gertrude's teaching jobs supporting his career.^[10][11][17] Apart from during her tenure in Kurseong, at each location Kiron followed his wife and recorded aspects of the environment and daily life through painting and sketches.^[11] However, Gertrude was not only his wife and key financial supporter, Kiron declared that he regarded her as his most significant artistic influence^[16] and was "my inspiration, my muse, my most important teacher and the love of my life".^[11]

In late July 1963, Sinha and her 18-year-old daughter, Kamona, travelled to Australia on the P&O Orient Lines ship SS Oronsay^[25] to bring Kiron's work to the notice of the Australian people^[47] by holding exhibitions of his work. In addition to promoting her husband's work, this was also an opportunity for a reunion with her only brother, Leopold Hirsch, whom she had not seen for 27 years.^[47] Hirsch had emigrated to Adelaide, Australia, in 1939.^[48][49] Hirsch and Sinha corresponded regularly, and Hirsch provided Kiron with painting materials for many decades and did his best to promote Kiron's work in Australia.^[17]

The first exhibition was held from 23 September to 4 October 1963 at the Argus Gallery in Melbourne. J. S. Bloomfield, the Minister for Education, opened the exhibition in the presence of the Guest of Honour, Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar, the Maharajah of Mysore.^[50][51][52]

The second exhibition was held from 15 to 25 October 1963 at the Dominion Gallery in Sydney.^[53][47][54]

Sinha and Kamona returned to India in November 1963.^[55] Although they maintained a regular correspondence, Sinha and Hirsch did not meet again.

In 1962 Kiron was introduced to Dr M. S. Randhawa. Randhawa admired Kiron's work, particularly his documentation of local people, and so he suggested that Kiron spend time in the Kulu and Kangra valleys, where he could record the landscape and people. Towards the end of 1963 the family moved to Naggar, Himachal Pradesh,^[15][45] and by the mid-1960s, Kiron had designed and built a house there. Until the late 1960s the family stayed in Naggar during most summers whilst they wintered in Santiniketan.^[15] It was in Naggar that the family developed a friendship with the famous actress Devika Rani and her Russian painter husband Svetoslav Roerich.^[11]

In March 1972, Gertrude and Kiron's only daughter, Kamona, died in an accident in Santiniketan.^[37]

A few years later, Kiron's eyesight deteriorated significantly.^[56] Until the early 1990s the couple had very little income and lived in poverty. Their poverty and Kiron's blindness caused the ageing couple to become more and more reclusive.^[11] This was compounded by a violent burglary on 17 September 1980 where Gertrude was badly hurt and paintings were damaged,^[11] and another on 25 August 2005 where at least 18 paintings were stolen.^[57]

In their final years, both Gertrude and Kiron led private lives and did not leave their compound. They were brought food and were cared for by local people until their deaths.^[11][16]

Gertrude Sinha died in Santiniketan on 5 September 2011, a few months after her 100th birthday.^[11]

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