Saya Myit (Burmese: ရာမြစ်; 1888–1966) was a major painter of the Traditional School in Burma who was a painter of Buddhist works for religious sites in Lower Burma. He is also popularly known for his Buddhist illustrations for books published by Zabhu Meit Swe Publishing House and Byinmazo Company.[1][2] However, in the 1990s an unknown, dynamic portion of his oeuvre surfaced in Burma—his more Western-style secular works, which had gone undocumented in Burma.[3]
Saya Myit was born to a family of peasants in the Tammanaing village, Kawhmu, Twante Township. His father, U Sine, was a respected sculptor and thus Saya Myit studied sculpture under him. Like many children in rural areas during his period, he received a monastic education, where his talent in art was encouraged. It is said that during this time, he once drew a picture of fruit among leaves on the wall of the monastery, and a squirrel, taking the depiction for the real thing, jumped at the picture and slipped down the wall.[1]
Professional education in art
His father died before he had finished his schooling, and his mother sent him to Saya Nyan (not to be confused with Ba Nyan) to study pavilion decoration. By the age of 16, he had fair mastery of this art. He later studied under the professional painter M.T. Hla (U Tun Hla) (1874–1946), who had a background in Traditional art, but who became a pioneer watercolorist of Burma, mastering Western techniques of painting. M.T. Hla picked up these skills through exposure to paintings by Robert Talbot Kelly in his book Burma Painted and Described, or postcards of the paintings from this book which were sold in stores. Hla also had contact and instruction of some kind with the Irish painter Sir Gerald Kelly;[4] both Kellys traveled to Burma in the early 1900s and painted its landscapes and people. Thus, M.T. Hla would likely have trained Saya Myit in both the Traditional and Western style of painting. M.T. Hla was also considered a master of glass painting[2][5] and apparently passed on these skills to Saya Myit[2] although it seems no works in the glass painting genre have survived by either M.T. Hla or Saya Myit.
Surprising discoveries of works
In the late 1990s and in the early years after 2000, unknown works by Saya Myit were discovered in Burma which called for a reappraisal of his oeuvre and his contributions to Burmese painting. In about 1996, a Burmese art dealer, Tin Win of Beikthano Gallery, happened upon four works by Saya Myit that were in the possession of one of Saya Myit's publishers of Buddhist illustrations for books.[3] The four works belonged to a set of paintings which have been entitled An Auspicious Charity. The two most provocative paintings in the four-piece set, Motor Car Procession and Carriage Procession (both 51 x 78.5 cm), have been reproduced in books. The former painting appears in Old Myanmar Paintings in the Collection of U Win (2006) by Hla Tin Htun [6] and both paintings appear in Burmese Painting: A Linear and Lateral History (2009) by Andrew Ranard.[7] On the basis of the features of the motor car depicted in Motor Car Procession, the works can be dated to the early 1930s. The two paintings with vehicles are dramatically different from anything that had been produced in Burmese painting up until that time, or even now, in style and technique. In both paintings, the vehicles (carriage and motor car) sit in the center of the pieces, surrounded by a large crowd of followers who are depicted in minuscule, realistic detail. The atmospheric effects and linear perspective in the piece are polished and so are the anatomical proportions of all the subjects. In this sense, the paintings are of the Western style, but both possess Traditional features in the statuesque, arrested quality of the scenes. The crowd scenes depict privileged and powerful persons as well as the subservient or anonymous with equal determination of detail, and have been described as possessing a "democratic gestalt".[3]
Portrait works
Saya Myit, like his predecessor in the Traditional arts, Saya Aye (1872–1930), also produced a handful of stunning commissioned portraits.[8] Three or four of these works by Saya Myit have emerged in Burma so far, and all of them, like Aye's portraits, mix features of Traditional Burmese painting—particularly floral arabesque—with Western-style painting. The colors in the paintings are rich and somber, Burmese in character, but unique to Saya Myit's work. Saya Myit was 16 years younger than Aye, and emerged as a painter in Burma later, when techniques of Western painting were more familiar to Burmese artists, and thus Myit's portraits, in technique at least, also reveal greater knowledge of Western painting.
Origin of Myit's Western skills
Myit could not have picked up all his skills in Western-style painting from his master, M.T. Hla, as his work far surpasses M.T. Hla's in quality. Nor was Myit apparently a member of the Burma Art Club, founded in 1913 by amateur British painters who subsequently trained Burmese painters in the Western style. Since the paintings of An Auspicious Charity can be dated to the early 1930s, it seems probable that the portraits were done in the 1930s as well. 1930 was a threshold year in Burmese painting as that was when Ba Nyan returned from approximately eight years of academic and professional study in the painting arts in London.[4] Within months after Ba Nyan's return, political activists, anxious to undermine British authority, called for the creation of a Burmese Artists and Handicraftsmen's Association (BAHA), which all painters might join, including the Traditional painters such as Saya Myit, who had never availed themselves of the privileged education at the Burma Art Club, open only to those painters who spoke English. Ba Nyan agreed to support the movement to create BAHA, and when it was founded, M.T. Hla, Myit's teacher, became the chairman of the organization; Ba Nyan became vice-chairman; and Saya Myit became one of a number of executive members. One of the purposes of BAHA was to provide a venue where the Western-educated painters such as Ba Nyan might mix with the Traditional painters and trade skills.[4] It is quite likely that this is how Myit picked up his advanced skills in landscape and portraiture, through interaction with or observing Ba Nyan. (Saya Aye never had the advantage of such training as he died in 1930, the year Ba Nyan returned from England. Aye was senior to Ba Nyan by almost 30 years and possessed an exalted reputation as a Traditional painter in Burma and probably would not have responded to the opportunity to learn from Ba Nyan.)
Portrait of Saya Chone
In 1949, Myit later produced a masterful portrait in oil of the famous early traditional painter, royal artist Saya Chone, done with a heavy impasto technique and complete mastery of Western painting. This painting possessed, ironically, no Traditional affects. As Chone had died in 1917, the image of Chone was taken from a photograph.[9]
Buddhist and nat works
Myit's Buddhist works were done for religious sites in Lower Burma. Unusual paintings of nats by Myit also emerged in the late 1990s and just after 2000.[10] A painting of the Apannaka Jataka by Myit [11] and one of his nat paintings are in the Fukuoka Asian Art Museum.
Andrew Ranard (2009). "The Grand Confluence: Traditional Painting Meets the West". Burmese Painting: A Linear and Lateral History. Silkworm Books. ISBN9789749511763.
G. Hla Maung (1968). On International and Burmese Painting (in Burmese). Sit Thi Daw Sarpay.
Nyan Shein (1998). On Burmese Painters, Sculptors, and Architects, Vol. 1 (in Burmese). Sarpay Beikman.
Min Naing (1974). U Ba Nyan: His Life and His Paintings (in Burmese). Sarpay Beikman.
Hla Tin Htun (2006). Old Myanmar Paintings in the Collection of U Win. Thavibu Gallery. ISBN974-9931-82-3.
April 03, 2023
saya, myit, this, burmese, name, saya, honorific, given, name, this, burmese, name, given, name, myit, there, family, name, burmese, 1888, 1966, major, painter, traditional, school, burma, painter, buddhist, works, religious, sites, lower, burma, also, popular. In this Burmese name Saya is an honorific not a given name In this Burmese name the given name is Myit There is no family name Saya Myit Burmese ရ မ စ 1888 1966 was a major painter of the Traditional School in Burma who was a painter of Buddhist works for religious sites in Lower Burma He is also popularly known for his Buddhist illustrations for books published by Zabhu Meit Swe Publishing House and Byinmazo Company 1 2 However in the 1990s an unknown dynamic portion of his oeuvre surfaced in Burma his more Western style secular works which had gone undocumented in Burma 3 Saya MyitBorn1888Died1966 1967 aged 78 NationalityBurmeseKnown forPaintingMovementTraditional Burmese Painting Innovations in Western Style Painting Contents 1 Early education 2 Professional education in art 3 Surprising discoveries of works 4 Portrait works 5 Origin of Myit s Western skills 6 Portrait of Saya Chone 7 Buddhist and nat works 8 Museum collections 9 See also 10 Notes 11 BibliographyEarly education EditSaya Myit was born to a family of peasants in the Tammanaing village Kawhmu Twante Township His father U Sine was a respected sculptor and thus Saya Myit studied sculpture under him Like many children in rural areas during his period he received a monastic education where his talent in art was encouraged It is said that during this time he once drew a picture of fruit among leaves on the wall of the monastery and a squirrel taking the depiction for the real thing jumped at the picture and slipped down the wall 1 Professional education in art EditHis father died before he had finished his schooling and his mother sent him to Saya Nyan not to be confused with Ba Nyan to study pavilion decoration By the age of 16 he had fair mastery of this art He later studied under the professional painter M T Hla U Tun Hla 1874 1946 who had a background in Traditional art but who became a pioneer watercolorist of Burma mastering Western techniques of painting M T Hla picked up these skills through exposure to paintings by Robert Talbot Kelly in his book Burma Painted and Described or postcards of the paintings from this book which were sold in stores Hla also had contact and instruction of some kind with the Irish painter Sir Gerald Kelly 4 both Kellys traveled to Burma in the early 1900s and painted its landscapes and people Thus M T Hla would likely have trained Saya Myit in both the Traditional and Western style of painting M T Hla was also considered a master of glass painting 2 5 and apparently passed on these skills to Saya Myit 2 although it seems no works in the glass painting genre have survived by either M T Hla or Saya Myit Surprising discoveries of works EditIn the late 1990s and in the early years after 2000 unknown works by Saya Myit were discovered in Burma which called for a reappraisal of his oeuvre and his contributions to Burmese painting In about 1996 a Burmese art dealer Tin Win of Beikthano Gallery happened upon four works by Saya Myit that were in the possession of one of Saya Myit s publishers of Buddhist illustrations for books 3 The four works belonged to a set of paintings which have been entitled An Auspicious Charity The two most provocative paintings in the four piece set Motor Car Procession and Carriage Procession both 51 x 78 5 cm have been reproduced in books The former painting appears in Old Myanmar Paintings in the Collection of U Win 2006 by Hla Tin Htun 6 and both paintings appear in Burmese Painting A Linear and Lateral History 2009 by Andrew Ranard 7 On the basis of the features of the motor car depicted in Motor Car Procession the works can be dated to the early 1930s The two paintings with vehicles are dramatically different from anything that had been produced in Burmese painting up until that time or even now in style and technique In both paintings the vehicles carriage and motor car sit in the center of the pieces surrounded by a large crowd of followers who are depicted in minuscule realistic detail The atmospheric effects and linear perspective in the piece are polished and so are the anatomical proportions of all the subjects In this sense the paintings are of the Western style but both possess Traditional features in the statuesque arrested quality of the scenes The crowd scenes depict privileged and powerful persons as well as the subservient or anonymous with equal determination of detail and have been described as possessing a democratic gestalt 3 Portrait works EditSaya Myit like his predecessor in the Traditional arts Saya Aye 1872 1930 also produced a handful of stunning commissioned portraits 8 Three or four of these works by Saya Myit have emerged in Burma so far and all of them like Aye s portraits mix features of Traditional Burmese painting particularly floral arabesque with Western style painting The colors in the paintings are rich and somber Burmese in character but unique to Saya Myit s work Saya Myit was 16 years younger than Aye and emerged as a painter in Burma later when techniques of Western painting were more familiar to Burmese artists and thus Myit s portraits in technique at least also reveal greater knowledge of Western painting Origin of Myit s Western skills EditMyit could not have picked up all his skills in Western style painting from his master M T Hla as his work far surpasses M T Hla s in quality Nor was Myit apparently a member of the Burma Art Club founded in 1913 by amateur British painters who subsequently trained Burmese painters in the Western style Since the paintings of An Auspicious Charity can be dated to the early 1930s it seems probable that the portraits were done in the 1930s as well 1930 was a threshold year in Burmese painting as that was when Ba Nyan returned from approximately eight years of academic and professional study in the painting arts in London 4 Within months after Ba Nyan s return political activists anxious to undermine British authority called for the creation of a Burmese Artists and Handicraftsmen s Association BAHA which all painters might join including the Traditional painters such as Saya Myit who had never availed themselves of the privileged education at the Burma Art Club open only to those painters who spoke English Ba Nyan agreed to support the movement to create BAHA and when it was founded M T Hla Myit s teacher became the chairman of the organization Ba Nyan became vice chairman and Saya Myit became one of a number of executive members One of the purposes of BAHA was to provide a venue where the Western educated painters such as Ba Nyan might mix with the Traditional painters and trade skills 4 It is quite likely that this is how Myit picked up his advanced skills in landscape and portraiture through interaction with or observing Ba Nyan Saya Aye never had the advantage of such training as he died in 1930 the year Ba Nyan returned from England Aye was senior to Ba Nyan by almost 30 years and possessed an exalted reputation as a Traditional painter in Burma and probably would not have responded to the opportunity to learn from Ba Nyan Portrait of Saya Chone EditIn 1949 Myit later produced a masterful portrait in oil of the famous early traditional painter royal artist Saya Chone done with a heavy impasto technique and complete mastery of Western painting This painting possessed ironically no Traditional affects As Chone had died in 1917 the image of Chone was taken from a photograph 9 Buddhist and nat works EditMyit s Buddhist works were done for religious sites in Lower Burma Unusual paintings of nats by Myit also emerged in the late 1990s and just after 2000 10 A painting of the Apannaka Jataka by Myit 11 and one of his nat paintings are in the Fukuoka Asian Art Museum Museum collections EditNational Museum of Myanmar Fukuoka Asian Art MuseumSee also EditSaya Aye M T Hla U Tun Hla Ba NyanNotes Edit a b Nyan Shein 1998 pp 80 83 harv error no target CITEREFNyan Shein1998 help a b c G Hla Maung 1968 pp 95 97 harv error no target CITEREFG Hla Maung1968 help a b c Ranard 2009 pp 70 76 79 82 a b c Naing 1974 Nyan Shein 1998 pp 61 67 harv error no target CITEREFNyan Shein1998 help Htun 2006 p 11 Ranard 2009 pp 77 79 Figs 78 80 81 Ranard 2009 pp 79 82 Figs 82 83 84 Ranard 2009 p 89 Fig 93 Ranard 2009 pp 87 89 Figs 90 91 Ranard 2009 p 88 Fig 92 Bibliography EditAndrew Ranard 2009 The Grand Confluence Traditional Painting Meets the West Burmese Painting A Linear and Lateral History Silkworm Books ISBN 9789749511763 G Hla Maung 1968 On International and Burmese Painting in Burmese Sit Thi Daw Sarpay Nyan Shein 1998 On Burmese Painters Sculptors and Architects Vol 1 in Burmese Sarpay Beikman Min Naing 1974 U Ba Nyan His Life and His Paintings in Burmese Sarpay Beikman Hla Tin Htun 2006 Old Myanmar Paintings in the Collection of U Win Thavibu Gallery ISBN 974 9931 82 3 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Saya Myit amp oldid 1059953668, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
