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Balwant Singh with a Goose

Attributed to Nainsukh Indian

ca. 1763

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 693

With an extreme economy of means, including fine brush drawing and minimal washes of color, the Guler master painter Nainsukh conjured the merest suggestion of architectural space to create this dramatic setting for the enigmatic events enacted within. The artist’s lifelong patron, Raja Balwant Singh of Guler, is shown in a sensitive profile portrait, standing formally and holding a sheathed long sword. Although the presence of a lone goose in the courtyard defies explanation, we may speculate that this is a personal tribute by the artist to his late patron, with the goose perhaps intended to invoke the raja’s departed spirit.

Balwant Singh with a Goose, Attributed to Nainsukh (active ca. 1735–78), Brush drawing with light pigment on uncolored paper, India, Himachal Pradesh, Guler — Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Title: Balwant Singh with a Goose

Artist: Attributed to Nainsukh (active ca. 1735–78)

Date: ca. 1763

Culture: India, Himachal Pradesh, Guler

Medium: Brush drawing with light pigment on uncolored paper

Dimensions: Image: 11 × 15 1/2 in. (28 × 39.4 cm)
Framed: 14 7/8 × 19 3/8 × 3/4 in. (37.8 × 49.2 × 1.9 cm)

Classification: Paintings

Credit Line: The Howard Hodgkin Collection, on loan from the Howard Hodgkin Indian Collection Trust

Accession Number: L.2022.30.13

Rights and Reproduction: Photo © Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford

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Asian Art at The Met

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