Classical Instrument Art Print – Santoor, The Lifted Soundboard

Provenance

'Santoor' is drawn as an instrument opened like a box: the pale soundboard is lifted clear of its wooden case and the strings and bridges are held above it, as if suspended for study. Small close-ups of a bridge and a row of tuning pins, with a pair of slim wooden mallets drawn below, complete a page that reads like an artist's sketchbook exploration of how an Indian classical instrument is put together.

The trapezoid soundboard floats at a slant above an open case divided by wooden braces, its surface pierced by two carved rosettes. Above it, rows of small arched bridges stand in diagonal lines, and fine strings run to a bar of pins at the far edge, tied to the case below by dashed guide lines. Rows of dark tuning pins line the side of the case in the foreground. Below the case lie two slim wooden mallets with spoon-shaped heads, one drawn again in enlarged detail with a small inlaid motif.

Pale gold spruce-toned wood contrasts with the deep red-brown of the case, and the silver strings are drawn as the finest of lines against cream. Loose pen strokes in russet, blue and grey build the shadows around each part, giving the page the lively, exploratory character of a sketchbook. That surface belongs to the artwork as drawn; the piece you receive is a print on canvas cloth, made to order.