Harvard Art Museums > 2008.105: Drawing Room, Bose House, Howrah Photographs Collections Search Exit Deep Zoom Mode Zoom Out Zoom In Reset Zoom Full Screen Add to Collection Order Image Copy Link Copy Citation Citation"Drawing Room, Bose House, Howrah (Laura McPhee) , 2008.105,” Harvard Art Museums collections online, Apr 18, 2024, https://hvrd.art/o/328195. This object does not yet have a description. Identification and Creation Object Number 2008.105 People Laura McPhee, American (New York City born 1958) Title Drawing Room, Bose House, Howrah Classification Photographs Work Type photograph Date 2005 Places Creation Place: South Asia, India, Bengal, Calcutta Culture American Persistent Link https://hvrd.art/o/328195 Physical Descriptions Technique Chromogenic print Dimensions 127 x 152.4 cm (50 x 60 in.) Inscriptions and Marks Signed: Signature label on mount State, Edition, Standard Reference Number Edition 1/5 Acquisition and Rights Credit Line Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Richard and Ronay Menschel Fund for the Acquisition of Photographs Copyright © Laura McPhee Accession Year 2008 Object Number 2008.105 Division Modern and Contemporary Art Contact am_moderncontemporary@harvard.edu Permissions The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request. Descriptions Commentary "The households I photographed in India consist of unusual amalgams of architectural styles overlaid by details of family life and personal history seen in the objects that adorn the rooms. These spaces speak to the vicissitudes of economic life, to incipient globalization, to the blending of history with contemporary living, to family and tradition, and to the long and complex political relationship between India and the west. This photograph is the formal living room of the Bose family of Howrah. The house is on Ramkrishnopur Lane which is across the Hooghly River from Calcutta. It was built in 1851 by Eshaan Chandra Bose who was the founder of the oldest stevedoring company in Calcutta. EC Bose and Company still exists and the Bose family still lives there in a joint family structure. My friend Modhurima Sinha's mother was born in this house as was her mother. Modhurima was the connection through which I was able to make these pictures in Calcutta. This space is particularly meaningful because it is her family's house. In the photograph you see a woman reflected in the glass over a painting at the far end of the room. The woman is Modhurima's mother and the painted portrait is her grandfather. The walls are painted pink and all the detail is hand painted. The room is decorated in Victorian style but with apparent Indian references." Laura McPhee, February 2009. Subjects and Contexts Collection Highlights Verification Level This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Modern and Contemporary Art at am_moderncontemporary@harvard.edu
