The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Wonder of the Age: Master Painters of India, 1100

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Wonder of the Age: Master Painters of India, 1100–1900

Guy, John, and Jorrit Britschgi (2011)

This title is in print.

Description

This vividly illustrated publication features 110 works by many of the most eminent painters in the history of Indian art. These remarkable paintings, dating from 1100 to 1900, were selected according to identifiable artists, and they refute the long-held view of anonymous authorship in Indian art.

Traditionally, Indian paintings have been classified by regional styles or dynastic periods, with an emphasis on subject matter. Stressing the combined tools of connoisseurship and inscriptional evidence, the pioneering research reflected in this book has identified individual artists and their oeuvres through the analysis of style.

The introductory essay outlines the origins of early Indian painting of the first millennium, which set the scene for the development of the art of the book. The sections that follow examine manuscript painting as it evolved from palm-leaf to paper, the emergence of traditional painting as an independent art form, and its demise with the coming of photography. Biographies of the artists whose works appear in this volume and a glossary of their major literary sources provide valuable context.

Table of contents

Director's Foreword
Thomas P. Campbell

Preface
John Guy and Jorrit Britschgi

Acknowledgments

Lenders to the Exhibition

The Art of the Book in South Asia
John Guy

From Palm-Leaf to Paper: Manuscript Painting, 1100–1500
John Guy

Mahavihara Master
Master of the Jainesque Shahnama
Master of the Devasano Pado Kalpasutura

Early Hindu-Sultanate Painting, 1500–1575
John Guy

'Abd al–Samad
Manohar
Farrukh Beg
Keshav Das
Aqa Riza
Abu'l Hasan
'Abid Mansur
Balchand
Payag
Masters of the Chunar Ragamala
Nasiruddin
Sahibdin
Hada Master and the Kota School
Early Master at the Court of Mandi

Late Mughal Painting and the Renaissance of the Hindu Courts, 1650–1730
Jorrit Britschgi

Ruknuddin
Nurpur Masters: Kripal, Devidasa, and Golu
Bahu Masters
Master at the Court of Mankot
Stipple Master
Masters of Early Kota
Bhavanidas
Chitarman II

Mughal Afterglow and the Later Court Styles in the Pahari Region and Rajasthan, 1730–1825
Jorrit Britschgi

Mir Kalan Khan
Manaku
Nainsukh
First Generation after Manaku and Nainsukh
Purkhu of Kangra
Bagta
Chokha

Late Indian Court Painting, Company Painting, and the Coming of Photography, 1825–1900
Jorrit Britschgi

Masters of the Company Portraits
Tara
Shivalal and Monanlal

Glossary of Literary Sources by John Guy
Notes
Bibliography
Index
Photography Credits
Maps appear on pages 16, 111, and 147

About the authors

John Guy is the Florence and Herbert Irving Curator of the Arts of South and Southeast Asia, Department of Asian Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

Jorrit Britschgi is Curator of Indian Painting, Museum Rietberg, Zurich.

Press reviews

The Burlington Magazine

"... for anyone interested in visual pleasure it is a treat ..."

The New York Times

"... the curators cite more than 30 art historians from Europe, the United States and India on whose scholarship their own work builds ... detailed yet accessible catalog."

Library Journal

"... lavishly illustrated ... a work of consummate scholarship, this book is perfect for readers with a serious interest in the history, art, and artists of India and Southeast Asia ..."

Publishers Weekly

"... this volume splendidly explores 800 years of Indian painting ... ambitious ... the beautifully reproduced images will make this book appeal to Indian art aficionados as well as those looking for a digestible introduction to an oeuvre of lesser-known masters."

Tags

Authors

John S. Guy | Jorrit Britschgi

Keywords

Asian Art, South and Southeast Asia

Print Titles

Behrendt, Kurt A. The Art of Gandhara in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2007.

Capistrano-Baker, Florina H. Art of Island Southeast Asia: The Fred and Rita Richman Collection. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1994.

Chow, Fong. "Arts from the Rooftop of Asia—Tibet, Nepal, Kashmir." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 29, no. 9 (May, 1971). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1971.

Dimand, Maurice Sven. "An Exhibition of Islamic and Indian Paintings." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, New ser., v. 14, no. 4 (December, 1955). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1955.

Dimand, Maurice Sven. "Mughal Painting Under Akbar the Great." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, New ser., v. 12, no. 2 (October, 1953). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1953.

Dimand, Maurice Sven. "The Emperor Jahangir, Connoisseur of Paintings." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, New ser., v. 2, no. 6 (February, 1944). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1944.

Guy, John, and Jorrit Britschgi. Wonder of the Age: Master Painters of India, 1100–1900. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2011.

Holmgren, Robert J., and Anita Spertus. Early Indonesian Textiles from Three Island Cultures. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1989.

Kossak, Steven. Indian Court Painting, 16th–19th Century. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1997.

Kossak, Steven M., and Jane Casey Singer, with an essay by Robert Bruce-Gardner. Sacred Visions: Early Paintings from Central Tibet. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1998.

Kossak, Steven. "The Arts of South and Southeast Asia." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 51, no. 4 (Spring, 1994). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1994.

LaRocca, Donald J., with essays by John Clarke, Amy Heller, and Lozang Jamspal. Warriors of the Himalayas: Rediscovering the Arms and Armor of Tibet. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2006.

Lerner, Martin. The Flame and the Lotus: Indian and Southeast Asian Art from the Kronos Collections. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1984.

Lerner, Martin, and Steven Kossak. The Lotus Transcendent: Indian and Southeast Asian Art from the Samuel Eilenberg Collection. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1991.

Lippe, Aschwin. "A Dvaravati Bronze Buddha from Thailand." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, New ser., v. 19, no. 5 (January, 1961). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1961.

Lippe, Aschwin. "Divine Images in Stone and Bronze: South India, Chola Dynasty (c. 850–1280)." Metropolitan Museum Journal, Vol. 4 (1971). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1971.

Lippe, Aschwin. "The Sculpture of Greater India." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, New ser., v. 18, no. 6 (February, 1960). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1960.

Priest, Alan. "Medieval Indian Sculpture." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, New ser., v. 8, no. 2 (October, 1949). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1949.

Stone, Elizabeth Rosen. "A Buddhist Incense Burner from Gandhara." Metropolitan Museum Journal, Vol. 39 (2004). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2004.

Stone, Elizabeth Rosen. "An Early Image of Maitreya as a Brahman Ascetic?" Metropolitan Museum Journal, Vol. 42 (2007). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2007.

Walker, Daniel. Flowers Underfoot: Indian Carpets of the Mughal Era. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1997.

Weinhardt, Carl J. "The Indian Taste." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, New ser., v. 16, no. 7 (March, 1958). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1958.

Weissmann, Ann. "Hindu musical instruments." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, New ser., v. 14, no. 3 (November, 1955). New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1955.

Welch, Stuart Cary, Annemarie Schimmel, Marie L. Swietochowski, and Wheeler M. Thackston. The Emperors' Album: Images of Mughal India. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1987.

Welch, Stuart Cary. India: Art and Culture, 1300–1900. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1985.

Online Titles

Ali, Atteqa. "The Rise of Modernity in South Asia." Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–.

Brown, Kathryn Selig. "Nepalese Painting." Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–.

Brown, Kathryn Selig. "Nepalese Sculpture." Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–.

Dehejia, Vidya. "Hinduism and Hindu Art." Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–.

Dehejia, Vidya. "Recognizing the Gods." Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–.

Dehejia, Vidya. "South Asian Art and Culture." Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–.

Department of Asian Art. "Kushan Empire (ca. 2nd century B.C.–3rd century A.D.)." Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–.

Department of Asian Art. "Mauryan Empire (ca. 323–185 B.C.)." Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–.

Department of Islamic Art. "List of Rulers of South Asia." Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–.

"Pachmari Hills (ca. 9000–3000 B.C.)." Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–.

Titles by author (6)

John S. Guy

Print Titles

Guy, John, and Jorrit Britschgi. Wonder of the Age: Master Painters of India, 1100–1900. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2011.

Watt, James C. Y., with Maxwell K. Hearn, Denise Patry Leidy, Zhixin Jason Sun, John Guy, Joyce Denney, Birgitta Augustin, and Nancy S. Steinhardt. The World of Khubilai Khan: Chinese Art in the Yuan Dynasty. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2010.

Online Titles

Guy, John. "Jain Manuscript Painting." Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–.

Guy, John. "Jain Sculpture." Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–.

Guy, John. "Relics." Connections. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2011.

Jorrit Britschgi

Print Titles

Guy, John, and Jorrit Britschgi. Wonder of the Age: Master Painters of India, 1100–1900. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2011.

Wonder of the Age: Master Painters of India, 1100–1900

Indian paintings have traditionally been classified according to regional styles or dynastic periods, with an emphasis on subject matter and narrative content. Recent scholarship, however, has begun to securely link innovations in style with specific artists and their lineages. Together with a careful study of artist's inscriptions and scribal colophons, it is now possible to construct a more precise chronology of the development of Indian painting.

This major loan exhibition is devoted to the connoisseurship of Indian painting, with some 220 works selected according to identifiable hands and named artists. The exhibition dispels the notion of anonymity in Indian art. The high points of artistic innovation in the history of Indian painting are demonstrated through works by forty of the greatest Indian painters, some of whom are identified for the first time. Each artist is represented in the exhibition by five to six seminal works.

Structured chronologically, the exhibition features the artistic achievement of individual artists in each period. Highlights include: A Sufi Sage, after the European personification of melancholia, Dolor by Farrukh Beg, an extraordinary painting representing the last chapter of the artist's long career (1615, Museum of Islamic Art, Doha); Peafowl attributed to Mansur, a master of observation of the natural world (ca. 1610, private collection); Jahangir receives Prince Khurram at Ajmer on his return from the Mewar campaign: page from the Windsor Padshahnama by Balchand, a master of composition (ca. 1635, Royal Collection, Royal Library, Windsor); Shiva and Parvati Playing Chaupad by Pahari, a superb painting with intense saturated color, bold but sparse composition, and stylized landscape, depicting the divine couple relaxing on a tiger skin playing chaupad, a form of chess (1694–95), Metropolitan Museum); and Emperor Muhammad Shah with Falcon Viewing his Garden at Sunset from a Palanquin attributed to Chitarman II (ca. 1730, Boston Museum of Fine Arts).