Sri Krishna as Envoy

Sri Krishna as Envoy is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma in 1905. This is an oil painting on canvas which depicts Sri Krishna in his role as an Envoy of Pandavas in front of the Kaurava Court. This painting can be viewed at Sri Jayachama Rajendra Art Gallery, Jaganmohan Palace, Mysore, Karnataka.

Pleasing

Pleasing is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma. In this painting, the artist depicts Draupadi who was the wife of pandavas, bewailing her lot to carry milk and honey to the court of Keechaka. This painting can be viewed at Sri Jayachama Rajendra Art Gallery, Jaganmohan Palace, Mysore, Karnataka.

Expectation

Expectation is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma. In this painting, the artist depicts a portrait of a North Indian Lady whose identity is still unknown. This painting can be viewed at Kowdiar Palace, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

The Milkmaid

The Milkmaid is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma in 1904. This painting depicts a north Indian village girl who is carrying milk to her home. This painting can be viewed at Sri Chitra Art Gallery, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

The Suckling Child

The Suckling Child is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma. This painting depicts an illustrative portrayal of Keralaite mother and her child. This painting can be viewed at Sri Jayachama Rajendra Art Gallery, Jaganmohan Palace, Mysore, Karnataka.

The Portrait of a Lady

The Portrait of a Lady is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma. It depicts a portrayed of a lady but many historians couldn’t figure out the identity of this lady. It is also considered as one of the most famous paintings by Raja Ravi Varma. This painting can be viewed at National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi.

Stolen Interview

Stolen Interview is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma. This is considered as one of the classic paintings depicting a boy who is meeting a girl. This painting can be viewed at Salar Jung Museum, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh.

Disappointed

Disappointed is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma. In this painting, the artist depicts a lady who is looking sad after reading disappointing news in a letter. This painting can be viewed at Salar Jung Museum, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh.

Woman Holding a Fruit

Woman Holding a Fruit is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma. This painting depicts an unknown lady shown, holding a fruit. This painting can be viewed at National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi.

Shakuntala

Shakuntala is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma in 1870. It depicts Shakuntala who is pretending to remove a thorn from her foot, while actually looking for her husband/lover. This painting can be viewed at National Art Gallery, Government Museum, Chennai, Tamilnadu.

The Maharashtrian Lady

The Maharashtrian Lady is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma. This painting depicts a woman who is traditionally dressed as a lady of Maharashtra. This painting can be viewed at Kowdiar Palace, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

Yashoda With Krishna

Yashoda With Krishna is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma. In this famous painting by raja rabi varma, Sri Krishna is depicted as a young child with her foster mother Yesoda. This painting can be viewed at Kowdiar Palace, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

Jatayu Vadha

Jatayu Vadha is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma in 1906. This painting depicts Ravana who could be seen killing Jatau. Jatau was encountering Ravana to save Seetha who is the wife of Lord Sri Rama. This painting can be viewed at Sri Jayachama Rajendra Art Gallery, Jaganmohan Palace, Mysore, Karnataka.

Harischandra in Distress

Harischandra in Distress is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma. In this painting, the artist depicts Harischandra who is parting with his only son in an auction after having lost his kingdom and all the wealth. This painting can be viewed at Sri Jayachama Rajendra Art Gallery, Jaganmohan Palace, Mysore, Karnataka.

Sri Rama Vanquishing the Sea

Sri Rama Vanquishing the Sea is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma. The artist depicts Varuna, the lord of the ocean is trying to pacifying Sri Rama. He was angered at the intransigence of the sea to give Lord Rama a way to enter Lanka. This painting can be viewed at Sri Jayachama Rajendra Art Gallery, Jaganmohan Palace, Mysore, Karnataka.

Galaxy of Musicians

Galaxy of Musicians is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma. In this painting, the Indian women dressed in regional attires are depicted playing on a variety of musical instruments. This painting can be viewed at Sri Jayachama Rajendra Art Gallery, Jaganmohan Palace, Mysore, Karnataka.

There Comes Papa

There Comes Papa is a painting produced around 1893 by Indian artist Raja Ravi Varma. This Famous painting by Raja Ravi Verma depicts his daughter who is holding her daughter. This painting can be viewed at Kowdiar Palace, Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala, India).

Lady in the Moon Light

Lady in the Moon Light is a painting produced around 1889 by Indian artist Raja Ravi Varma. This is another classic painting by the artist with extraordinary light effects. This painting can be viewed at Sri Jayachama Rajendra Art Gallery, Jaganmohan Palace, Mysore, Karnataka.

Mother and Child

Mother and Child is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma. This painting depicts a unique style showing the affection of mother towards her child. This painting can be viewed at Kowdiar Palace, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

Sri Krishna Liberating His Parents

Sri Krishna Liberating His Parents is a painting produced by Raja Ravi Varma. It depicts Sri Krishna with brother Balarama is freeing his parents from prison. This painting can be viewed at Sri Jayachama Rajendra Art Gallery, Jaganmohan Palace, Mysore, Karnataka.

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Three Girls

Three Girls is a painting produced by Amrita Sher-Gil in 1935. This is the first work to be painted by the Indian artist after returning to India from Europe in 1934. It is also known as Group of Three Girls and won the gold medal at an exhibition of Bombay art society. This painting can be viewed at the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi.

Ancient Storyteller

Ancient Storyteller is a painting produced by Amrita Sher-Gil in 1940. In this painting, the artist depicts an old man who is sitting in front of three boys and telling them interesting stories. There is an old female figure who appears to be cooking food for the kids.

South Indian Villagers Going to a Market

South Indian Villagers Going to a Market by Amrita Sher-Gil

South Indian Villagers Going to a Market is a painting produced by Amrita Sher-Gil in 1940. The painting depicts a group of people who appears to be from Southern India are going to a nearby market. This painting can be viewed at National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi.

Brahmacharis

Brahmacharis is a painting produced by Amrita Sher-Gil in 1937. In this painting, the Indian artist depicts three brahmacharis men with two children sitting on the ground. As per Hindu culture, the Brahmachari is a male who practices brahmacharya.

Hungarian Market Scene

Hungarian Market Scene is a painting produced by Amrita Sher-Gil in 1938. The scene in this painting depicts the environment around the Hungarian market. A lot of people can be seen shopping and roaming around the market. This painting can be viewed at the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi.

Haldi Grinders

Haldi Grinders is a painting produced by Amrita Sher-Gil in 1940. In this painting, the artist depicts three women who are in grinding haldi in the forest. Haldi is a Hindi word which means Turmeric. This painting can be viewed at the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi.

Mother India

Mother India is a painting produced by Amrita Sher-Gil in 1935. The painting was completed around the Modern art period and it depicts a woman with two kids sitting in a dark room. The woman shown in this painting is believed to be Mother India.

Open Air Painters

Open Air Painters is a painting produced by Amrita Sher-Gil in 1938. This painting depicts three artist painting in an open field in the forest. The distinct man is standing while the other two are women seated on opposite sides. This painting can be viewed at the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi.

Two Elephants

Two Elephants is a painting produced by Amrita Sher-Gil in 1940. This painting depicts two elephants, one longer the male elephant and the other shorter which appears to be a female elephant. The dimension of this painting is 46cm X 54.3cm.

Bride’s Toilet

Bride’s Toilet is a painting produced by Amrita Sher-Gil in 1937. This painting by the Indian artist depicts the post-impressionism style. This painting can be viewed at the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi. The dimension of this painting is 146cm x 88.8cm.

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Mystical Beginnings

The paintings created between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries in this area are characterized by their brilliant colors and vivid depictions of Hindu epic narratives, as well as magisterial courtly life. They illustrated gods and demons in spiritual battle, fantastical creatures of mysterious origin and great power. Using symbols that are central to Indian literature and worship, these craftsmen celebrated the diverse stylistic choices of their unique tradition.

Largely born from India’s ancient texts, poems, and songs, these mystical stories of good and evil were kept alive in the artwork housed within temples and other places of worship.

The remarkable evolution of style and treatment of materials can be seen in the medieval Hindu sculpture of cave reliefs and frescoes, which led to the handheld court paintings that occupied a space somewhere in between image and icon.

Careful details like a burnished gold leaf and crisp line quality were used to illuminate the mythological beginnings of these meaningful narratives, emphasizing their spiritual importance with a painstakingly intentional process.

Indian Paintings – Springs of Divinity

Like many of the artifacts that survive in present-day India, the tradition of making these court paintings originates in the leadership of Mughal emperor Akbar. A man of compelling historical importance, he reigned from 1556-1605 and commissioned a staggering number of artworks that help us to understand the culture of an empire that he worked tirelessly to establish.

The crumbling of the Mughal Empire in 1858 resulted in a period of unfortunate decline for the practice of Rajput court painting. However, in the glow of its cultural relevance, these works were highly respected for their intimate nature and poignant subject matter.

The private experience of holding a small tablet in one’s hands suggested that the image was made for that individual alone, providing a confidential opportunity to interact with who or what the painting depicted. They were meant to examine at close range, one at a time, like the pages of some mystical book holding the answers to spiritual enlightenment.

The images were painted with a kind of opaque watercolor, made up of vegetable and mineral pigments, delicately applied to several laminations of thin paper. The color was added with a small, soft brush over a carefully rendered sketch and a thin layer of ground. A whole series was then framed with similar materials so as to suggest a continuous narrative, which was inscribed on its border or attached flyleaf. The finishing touch was to burnish the frame with an agate or smooth stone, resulting in a smooth, polished edge that contained one scene of a longer story.

This method of production seems to have originated during the Mughal Empire, Indian Court Paintings and continued for centuries under various rulers after Akbar’s reign had ended. The stylistic amalgam that served as inspiration for Rajput court painting was developed slowly during the Mughal reign, beginning with one of Akbar’s first great projects in 1557. Throughout the following fifteen years, he commissioned the creation of 1,400 paintings illustrating the Hamzanama. This ancient and well-known Persian romance told the story of Hamza in fourteen separate volumes and helped the artists to hone their skills over the course of its completion.

A Gracious Mix of Talent and Skill

Two of the most exquisite panels that are typical of the series as a whole is titled, “Assad Ibn Kariba Launches a Night Attack on the Camp of Malik Iraj” and “Umar Walks Around the Fulad Castle, Meets a Foot Soldier, and Kicks Him to the Ground”.

The composition of both scenes, like most early Mughal paintings, are busy with the flattened silhouettes and patterned surfaces of Persian influence. Building upon these previous techniques, the Indian artists shaded many figures and objects, giving them a physicality that was not present before. Developments were also made upon the Hindu tradition of incorporating bright reds and yellows, as well as the heavy-limbed depiction of female characters.

Passionate Humanity is one core theme of many works

The final paintings of the Hamzanama show the further complexity of artistic technique in their utilization of facial expression, dynamic positioning of the body, and the suggestion of space in deep vistas surrounding living, breathing people. These later works are imbued with an emotional power and dynamism that emphasize the artists’ departure from a Persian style that was now stale and static in comparison.

Upon studying images such as “Umar Walks Around the Fulad Castle”, it is apparent that Akbar’s army of painters had learned to empathize with their subjects, projecting their own human feelings onto the faces of those they depicted.

Akbar’s encouragement of direct emotional expression initiated what is now arguably the most distinctive characteristic of Indian court painting as a tradition. While it is rarely discussed, this quality is present in the vast majority of miniature paintings, whether they were made by the courts or not.

A prime example of this mature Akbari style of painting is the Metropolitan Museum’s “Hamid Bhakra is Punished by Akbar”, created in 1597. As a single chapter in the official history of his reign, the emperor is depicted riding a horse during the final moments of an imperial hunt that had taken place more than thirty years earlier.

In the foreground of the picture, Hamid’s face is full of shame as he sits backward astride a donkey, his head shaven in penance.

Suffused with the powerful imagery of its mythological past, Indian painting expressed a new way of seeking the divine through personal devotion, or Bhakti.

The combination of painstaking technique and burning passion helped the emperor’s artists to grow in skill as well as purpose, providing their leaders with a more intimate method of spiritual practice.

Art has a habit of growing with necessity, and it was through this need for contact with a higher power that the Indian people were able to access their emotions on a more personal level than ever before. The passionate dedication to the origins of their culture is immortalized in the masterpieces that began with the reign of Akbar Mughal and will last for centuries to come.

All images used from Metropolitan Museum Kronos Collection

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