THE RAJAM ART COLLECTION

Those CyberCadets who visit TAKA or read our books well know the amazing artwork of S. Rajam (10 February 1919 29 January 2010) musician and painter from Tamil Nadu. He worked on our art commissions for decades and by a small miracle we acquired his life's work, some 60 years worth, which we brought to Kauai and have kept in an archive container.

Amy-Ruth Holt, PhD in Art History (Ohio State University), came to know of the collection and flew to Kauai with her daughter, Maya, to spend five days cataloging and photographing key parts of the collection.

They have been sorting through the hundreds of paintings, all roughly organized in large manila envelopes, bringing new clarity to our collection. We thank you both for this important (and tedious) work, something only an expert could accomplish.

And we honor S. Rajam. His work lives on in every corner of our mission.

In his studio in Mylapore, a district of Chennai known for its rich community of artists.

The mother and daughter worked in the Cedar Room during the mornings.

Hundreds of photos of the originals, one by one.

The art here on the right, some of his finest work, was painted on wooden panels. The rest is kept in large envelopes organized according to topics (such as 108 paintings of the Tirukural chapters or the 64 Siva Pranks).

Amy lays them out on the table.

As you can see, even the walls are covered with Rajam\

s creations, from ceiling to floor.'

He was far more famous for his musical compositions and performances but it was his soulful art that captured us.

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