Returned to lender The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.
Temple Hanging with a Hindu Devotee
India (Tamil Nadu), for the Sri Lankan market
Not on view
This Indian hanging is a masterwork of the art of kalamkari, a method of hand-painting dyes on fabric using a bamboo pen, or kalam. The artist’s skill is illustrated by the sensitivity of the painted line, the sophisticated integration of the figure into a foliate landscape, and the fine rendering of the worshipful sentiment of the Shiva devotee. Produced in one of the great cloth-painting centers of south India, this hanging was intended for export to Sri Lanka. The presence of a large Tamil Hindu community there generated a demand for imported Indian textiles such as this hanging, which would have been displayed during religious festivals.
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