At a time when people are extremely finicky about copyright, S. Rajam, a remarkable artist, never demanded copyright for his works, N. Murali, president of the Music Academy, said on Friday.

His inspirations

Speaking at the centenary celebrations of painter, musician and actor S. Rajam, he noted how his paintings of the Trinity of Carnatic Music were freely available and reproduced too. “He said it was homage to the Trinity of Carnatic Music. His works were inspired by the Ajanta paintings and not just the trinity. He has immortalised many other composers too. He was modest, unassuming and his humanity stood above art,” Mr. Murali said. Rajam took particular interest in promoting the ‘vivadhi ragas’ that were frowned upon, he added.

Artist Keshav said Rajam had an excellent eye for detail and was meticulous in his work. “To get the exact blue of Lord Rama in the painting, he used wash technique; he would apply a colour, dip it in water and wash it off and again, apply another and wash it off. He would even go up to 40 washes,” he said.

Historian V. Sriram noted that Rajam had an eidetic memory. “He even remembered the inaugural session of the academy and narrated everything that happened then,” he said.

Prizes were given to winners of the S. Rajam Centenary Music Competition.