Air India/Tokyo
Artist
K. K. Save
Date1965
MediumOffset Lithograph
Dimensions39 1/4 x 24 3/4 in. (99.7 x 62.9 cm)
ClassificationsPoster
Credit LinePoster House Permanent Collection
Object numberPH.6848
DescriptionApart from the brilliant creativity of its own in-house design studio, Air-India also brought in outside artists to bring the Maharaja to life. Walter Langhammer was one of them. Born and raised in Austria, he fled to Bombay with his Jewish wife shortly before World War II. There, he became one of the founders of the Bombay Progressives, India’s most famous school of modern oil painting, eventually becoming the first art director of the Times of India. The Maharaja is shown here in the costume of a Kabuki actor in Tokyo. Kabuki is a traditional Japanese dance-drama characterized by ornate costumes and stylized performances. Although this poster was actually drawn by K. K. Save of the Air-India studio, Langhammer’s art direction can be clearly seen in the impressionistic brushstrokes and the pure, vibrant colors of which he was so fond.On View
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