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Two striped tigers creeping through tall grass, drawn in brown and white on a sheet with clipped corners

Two Tigers Creeping through the Grass

Raden Saleh

What you see

The front tiger presses itself flat to the ground, legs stretched out, long tail trailing behind and mouth open. The second, behind it and half hidden in tall grass, raises its head and stares the same way. Both heads point toward something beyond the drawing, which pulls the eye to the right edge.

Browns dominate the sand-coloured paper, and touches of white make the chest, paws and muzzle shine. The stripes are set down with quick strokes and the grass with loose lines. Notice the shape of the sheet, with its corners cut on the diagonal, and the signature in the lower left.

About Raden Saleh

Raden Saleh was born around 1811 near Semarang, on Java, and was the first Javanese to be trained as a painter in the Western manner: he arrived in Europe in 1829 and lived there for about twenty years. A Romantic painter, he became famous for his dramatic scenes of wild animals and hunts, his Javanese landscapes and his portraits. His painting “The Arrest of Prince Diponegoro” has been part of Indonesia’s national heritage since 2014, and his house in Jakarta, inspired by a German castle, is now a hospital.

All 12 works by Raden Saleh

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