Charming Krishna (Man-Har Krishna)

1934–40, printed in Germany

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 251

This depiction of the blue-skinned Krishna as a little boy affords the onlooker the experience of seeing the divine (darshan). Devotional prints could approximate the temple experience in the home; examples such as this were routinely displayed as part of a household puja shrine. In this highly popular print, a green parrot pecks at Krishna’s chin, expressing the love of a devotee (bhakta). Krishna is bejeweled in the Rajasthani manner, wearing a peacock-feather plume in his hair and sporting a flute tucked nonchalantly into his waistcloth, foretelling his teenage exploits with the female cowherders (gopis) that he charmed away from their homes (and husbands) at night with his playing. The artist, Narottam Narayan Sharma, was a renowned painter of devotional Krishna images.

Artwork Details

Object Information

Overview

Exhibition History

Title: Charming Krishna (Man-Har Krishna)
Artist: Narottam Narayan Sharma (Indian, active 1930s–1950s)
Date: 1934–40, printed in Germany
Culture: India, Rajasthan, Jodhpur
Medium: Photo-offset lithograph on paper
Dimensions: Image (excluding text): 18 5/8 × 13 1/8 in. (47.3 × 33.3 cm)
Sheet: 19 3/4 × 13 3/4 in. (50.1 × 34.9 cm)
Classification: Prints
Credit Line: Purchase, Peter Louis and Chandru Ramchandani Gift, 2018
Object Number: 2018.277
Curatorial Department: Asian Art

More Artwork

Krishna playing the flute (Murli Manohar), Narottam Narayan Sharma Indian, Photo-offset lithograph with varnish on paper, Germany — Krishna playing the flute (Murli Manohar)
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ca. 1935

Dagger (Katar), Steel, gold, Indian, Mughal — Dagger (Katar)
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Shri Krishna, Photo-offset lithograph on paper, India, Mumbai, Maharashtra — Shri Krishna
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1940s

Radha, Chromolithograph with varnish on paper, North India — Radha
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Shiva in meditation (Shree Shankar), Narottam Narayan Sharma Indian, Photo-offset lithograph on paper, India — Shiva in meditation (Shree Shankar)
Narottam Narayan Sharma
ca. 1940

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