An artist in his own right, Ravi Varma’s uncle witnessed the transformation of the aesthetic paradigm from the traditional and illustrative to the perspective induced realistic picture. Ravi Varma carried forward this momentum, expanding the new idiom across India and to the common man. Other members of the Kilimanoor family who were engaged in the visual arts were his brother C. Raja Raja Varma (3^rd April 1860 – 4^th January 1905) and his sister, Mangalabai Thampuratty (1866 – 1954).

The display at the Raja Ravi Varma gallery is spread across two floors with the Ground floor dedicated to the works of Raja Ravi Varma and the first floor to the associated artists.