Madhu Madhavi Ragini

COLLECTION NAME:

The AMICA Library

mediaCollectionId

AMICO~1~1

The AMICA Library

Collection

true

AMICA ID:

ASIA.1979.057

amicoid

ASIA.1979.057

AMICA ID

false

AMICA Library Year:

1999

aly

1999

AMICA Library Year

false

Object Type:

Drawings and Watercolors

oty

Drawings and Watercolors

Object Type

false

Creator Nationality:

Asian; Indian Sub-Continent; Indian

crc

Asian; Indian Sub-Continent; Indian

Creator Nationality

false

Creator Dates/Places:

Central Indian

cdt

Central Indian

Creator Dates/Places

false

Creator Name-CRT:

Central Indian

crt

Central Indian

Creator Name-CRT

false

Title:

Madhu Madhavi Ragini

otn

Madhu Madhavi Ragini

Title

false

View:

Full view

rid

Full view

View

false

Creation Date:

c. 1660-1680

oct

c. 1660-1680

Creation Date

false

Creation Start Date:

1660

ocs

1660

Creation Start Date

false

Creation End Date:

1680

oce

1680

Creation End Date

false

Materials and Techniques:

Opaque watercolor and ink on paper

omd

Opaque watercolor and ink on paper

Materials and Techniques

false

Creation Place:

India, Madhya Pradesh, Malwa region

ocp

India, Madhya Pradesh, Malwa region

Creation Place

false

Dimensions:

9 x 6 5/8 in. (22.9 x 16.8 cm)

met

9 x 6 5/8 in. (22.9 x 16.8 cm)

Dimensions

false

AMICA Contributor:

Asia Society

oon

Asia Society

AMICA Contributor

false

Owner Location:

New York, New York, USA

oop

New York, New York, USA

Owner Location

false

ID Number:

1979.057

ooa

1979.057

ID Number

false

Credit Line:

Asia Society: The Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection

ooc

Asia Society: The Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection

Credit Line

false

Parts and Pieces:

folio from a Ragamala series

opp

folio from a Ragamala series

Parts and Pieces

false

Rights:

http://www.asiasociety.org

orl

<a href="http://www.asiasociety.org"target="_new">http://www.asiasociety.org</a>

Rights

false

Context:

Illustrations in books and small-scale paintings grouped in albums or sets are among the most important art forms produced in India from the 16th through 19th centuries. During this period, much of northern India was ruled by the Mughals, a dynasty of Central Asian origins that had entered northern India from Afghanistan in 1526. However, different regions of the northwestern part of the subcontinent, such as Malwa, were under the control of native Rajput kings. This painting, produced in the Malwa region, illustrates some of the differences between Mughal and Rajput pictorial styles. Dated to 1660-80, this painting is an illustration of the musical mode Madhu Madhavi Ragini from a Ragamala series. The composition and the use of space and color reflect the conceptual differences between the Rajput and Mughal world views and pictorial styles. Mughal paintings are usually particularized, stressing a specific individual or event. Although Rajput paintings dealing with courtly themes and subjects can also be historically specific, many Rajput pictures, especially those dealing with literary or religious themes, do not adhere to empirical reality. Mughal paintings show an interest in spatial depth, which helps to place a scene in a setting, while Rajput narrative paintings often place figures and architecture within a flat picture plane. The colors used in Rajput paintings are brighter and bolder than those used in contemporaneous Mughal works, and the gestures and postures used in Rajput paintings are more stylized than those found in the art of the Mughal court.

Within the Rajput tradition, Malwa painting is noted for its conservatism; compared with most other schools of painting in Rajasthan, it betrays little awareness of or influence fromthe predominant Mughal style and insistently harks back to pre-Mughal conventions. This can be seen here in the conventionalized figures and architecture.

The blues, reds, and yellows; the relatively simple backgrounds; and the figures' sweet facesand delicate gestures are characteristics shared by Malwa paintings of the later 17th century. The simplification and elongation of the figures are typical of works painted in the third quarter of the century.

Love is the theme of this charming illustration of a woman rushing through the rain to meet her lover. Ragamala paintings, or illustrations to a 'Garlands of Ragas,' represent a uniquely Indian amalgamation of music, poetry, and painting. Often translated as 'modes' or 'melody types,' ragas are tonal frames that provide a set structure (scales, center tone, progressions, and so forth) for a piece of music that can then be improvised on according to the style of the musician. In literature, each musical mode is personified in a male (raga) or female (ragini) form, referring to earlier classifications of lovers and heroes and heroines. Moods and seasons associated with musical modes were incorporated into literary descriptions, which in turn formed the basis for paintings. In Madhu Madhavi Ragini, the sense of joyous anticipation is heightened by the time of day--early evening--and by the rain and lightning that characterize the monsoon season. The sense of drama is intensified by the woman's startled reactiontothe bolt of lightning and the birds flying in the sky above her head. All of these characteristics are commonly associated in love literature throughout India with Abhisarika Nayika, the one who braves all obstacles to be with her lover.

cxd

Illustrations in books and small-scale paintings grouped in albums or sets are among the most important art forms produced in India from the 16th through 19th centuries. During this period, much of northern India was ruled by the Mughals, a dynasty of Central Asian origins that had entered northern India from Afghanistan in 1526. However, different regions of the northwestern part of the subcontinent, such as Malwa, were under the control of native Rajput kings. This painting, produced in the Malwa region, illustrates some of the differences between Mughal and Rajput pictorial styles. Dated to 1660-80, this painting is an illustration of the musical mode Madhu Madhavi Ragini from a Ragamala series. The composition and the use of space and color reflect the conceptual differences between the Rajput and Mughal world views and pictorial styles. Mughal paintings are usually particularized, stressing a specific individual or event. Although Rajput paintings dealing with courtly themes and subjects can also be historically specific, many Rajput pictures, especially those dealing with literary or religious themes, do not adhere to empirical reality. Mughal paintings show an interest in spatial depth, which helps to place a scene in a setting, while Rajput narrative paintings often place figures and architecture within a flat picture plane. The colors used in Rajput paintings are brighter and bolder than those used in contemporaneous Mughal works, and the gestures and postures used in Rajput paintings are more stylized than those found in the art of the Mughal court.Within the Rajput tradition, Malwa painting is noted for its conservatism; compared with most other schools of painting in Rajasthan, it betrays little awareness of or influence fromthe predominant Mughal style and insistently harks back to pre-Mughal conventions. This can be seen here in the conventionalized figures and architecture.The blues, reds, and yellows; the relatively simple backgrounds; and the figures' sweet facesand delicate gestures are characteristics shared by Malwa paintings of the later 17th century. The simplification and elongation of the figures are typical of works painted in the third quarter of the century.Love is the theme of this charming illustration of a woman rushing through the rain to meet her lover. Ragamala paintings, or illustrations to a 'Garlands of Ragas,' represent a uniquely Indian amalgamation of music, poetry, and painting. Often translated as 'modes' or 'melody types,' ragas are tonal frames that provide a set structure (scales, center tone, progressions, and so forth) for a piece of music that can then be improvised on according to the style of the musician. In literature, each musical mode is personified in a male (raga) or female (ragini) form, referring to earlier classifications of lovers and heroes and heroines. Moods and seasons associated with musical modes were incorporated into literary descriptions, which in turn formed the basis for paintings. In Madhu Madhavi Ragini, the sense of joyous anticipation is heightened by the time of day--early evening--and by the rain and lightning that characterize the monsoon season. The sense of drama is intensified by the woman's startled reactiontothe bolt of lightning and the birds flying in the sky above her head. All of these characteristics are commonly associated in love literature throughout India with Abhisarika Nayika, the one who braves all obstacles to be with her lover.</P?

Context

false

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Madhu Madhavi Ragini