Esch, Vincent Jerome

WATERCOLOUR AND PENCIL heightened with white (visible area 540 x 1000mm.), on paper, signed 'Vincent. J. Esch C.V.O./F.R.I.B.A.' (lower right), mounted, framed and glazed

By direct descent from the artist to the present owner

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Vincent Jerome Esch CVO FRIBA (1876-1950) sailed to India in 1898 to work on the construction of the Bengal-Nagpur railway, and subsequently enjoyed twenty-five years of success as an architect based in Calcutta. "In 1914 Esch was engaged by the Nizam of Hyderabad, Osman Ali Khan, to assist in the redevelopment of that city following its devastation by floods and plague in 1908 and 1911. His contribution was the design of numerous substantial public buildings including the railway station (1914), the high court (1916), the city high school (1917-20), and the Osmania General Hospital (1918-21). Departing here from the strictly classical style he employed in Calcutta, he developed instead a new style based on the Islamic architecture of southern India, which he found within the Nizam's domains. He worked closely with local craftsmen and architects, who continued to produce further public buildings in the city, developing his manner, after his departure ... [He] became one of the most significant practitioners of and apologists for what has come to be known as the Indo-Saracenic movement: the use of Indian sources for architecture in late British India." (ODNB)

This large and highly detailed architectural design by Esch for the City High School in the Indo-Saracenic style was accepted by the Nizam, and the school is still in use today, now known as the Hyderabad Public School (or HPS), Begumpet.