Image size: 180.0 x 100.2 cm
George Groslier (b. 1887, Cambodia – d. 1945, Cambodia) was a French artist, author, archaeologist, architect, civil servant, founding director of the School of Cambodian Arts and the National Museum of Cambodia. While born in Cambodia, he was raised in France and studied at the Ecole nationale supérieure des Beaux-arts in Paris under the artist Albert Maignan. Groslier settled in Cambodia in 1917 and opened the School of Cambodian Arts and National Museum of Cambodia with a firm desire to preserve the “pure” art of Cambodia, meaning the traditional and decorative arts. While he was a painter, Groslier never taught at the school himself.This painting was likely intended by George Groslier to fulfil a commission of Résident Supérieur de Cambodge (RSC) in 1914. The commission was to add three large decorative paintings to the Throne Hall of the Royal Palace of Cambodia with the subjects being Buddhism, Brahmanism and the relation between the two. The commission was interrupted by the First World War. This painting of his—with its large format and striking composition—is fitting for its intended display at a location of royal prestige.
