Faith, Narrative and Desire:
Masterpieces of Indian painting in the British Museum
Celebrating 60 years of Indian
Independence
9 August – 11 November 2007
Room 91
Admission free
Part of the London-wide season INDIA NOW !
This summer the British Museum will display a selection from its
outstanding collection of Indian paintings to celebrate the 60th
anniversary of Indian Independence (15 August). Around fifty works
dating from the late seventeenth to the early twentieth century
will give an insight into the great beauty and variety of Indian
painting. Gifts and recent acquisitions will be a particular
feature of the exhibition.
Displayed to the public for the first time, will be a group of
South Indian paintings selected from a large group acquired by the
Museum in April. They are executed in the ‘Company style’
(painted by Indian artists for European patrons) and date to about
1820. In brilliant colour they depict the gods and goddesses of the
Tamil country and are witness to the then growing European interest
in classification - not only of flora and fauna - but also of Hindu
deities. These paintings demonstrate the Enlightenment desire to
grapple with the new and complex culture that Europeans encountered
in the subcontinent, and then attempted to order by
depiction. Each deity is painted in an extremely fine hand on
laid European paper and burnished with gold leaf and is draped in
exquisite fabrics, the very textiles that helped establish the
trading links between India and Britain.
Also in the exhibition will be paintings illustrating the
different regional traditions of Indian painting from the
seventeenth-early twentieth centuries. Amongst these will be
paintings of the type known as Barahmasa which illustrate the
seasons and the emotions that are connected with them. In one
of these paintings, ‘The Month of Bhadon’, monsoon clouds gather in
darkening skies as lovers sit on a terrace; the moment is heavy
with expectation. After the rains, the gardens beneath are verdant
and lush and a trio of young elephants are seen playing in a lake
in the foreground. These paintings of the seasons are used as
metaphors for emotion - for Indian painting is all about the
landscape of the imagination. The intimate scale of these courtly
paintings is a rich and intimate feast for the eye and these
characteristics contrast with the broad, vigorous colours of a
group of story-telling paintings from the southern Deccan that are
also on display. These are of the type known as Paithan and have
recently been generously donated to the Museum and are dramatic and
stylized pictures, of brilliant colour. They were used by
rural story-tellers who accompanied their narration with these
extraordinary paintings. Favourite subjects are the
narratives of the Mahabharata and scenes from the Story of
Harishchandra. Yet other traditions to be displayed show
examples of the so-called Ragamala paintings which link musical
melody with the time of day and the types of emotional response
associated with that time. Examples on show are from 18th
century Rajasthan.
For more information or images please contact Hannah Boulton on
+44 (0) 20 7323 8522 or hboulton@thebritishmuseum.ac.uk
Notes to Editors:
- This summer Masterpieces of the British Museum on BBC 4 will
include a programme on two of the most outstanding items in the
exhibition. The magnificent 'Siva and Parvati on a Terrace' and
'The Month of Bhadon' from the Barahmasa series.
- This exhibition is part of "India Now", a
three-month season centring on the historic and contemporary
culture of India and London's connection with it. It is being
organised by the Mayor’s Office at the Greater London Authority, it
will include exhibitions and activities across the capital
dedicated to Indian art, film, food, theatre, music and fashion.
Over 150 of London's cultural organisations will participate in the
season which will showcase India's contribution to world culture,
its rich tradition and most importantly raise awareness and
celebrate new Indian trends. Both invited Indian artists and
London-based artists will be involved in the events.
- Press contact in the Mayor's Press Office at the Greater London
Authority:- Ben McKnight Tel: +44 (0) 20 7983 4071 or email:
ben.mcknight@london.gov.uk
- The British Museum Press will publish 'Indian Art in Detail' by
Professor Anna L. Dallapiccola to accompany the exhibition.