Mewari Miniature Painting (1680-1698) by Allah Baksh
Paper Type: 130gsm Art paper (Matt) | Size: 242mm x 178mm; 484pp
All colour; 385 photographs; 484 pages; Hardback
The miniature paintings of the Gita by Allah Baksh, published in
this volume for the first time, are from the late seventeenth century Mewar.
Commissioned by Udaipur’s Maharana Jai Singh, these paintings of the Gita are
part of an illustrated Mahabharata folio of more than 4000 works.
Allah Baksh’s luminous work on the Gita has
no precedent in India’s art tradition. He has illustrated Krishna’s ecstatic
song, verse by abstract verse. His images, meditative and unostentatious, are
free from both heroic posturing and spiritual pride. Their colours are clear
and luminous; their lines are restrained and precise. The folio reveals an
artist for whom the Gita is a magnificent conversation between man and god
about the pity and the sorrow of war. Allah Baksh’s art of visionary
thoughtfulness deserves an honoured place in the great library of Indian
scriptures and their interpretations.
Alok Bhalla’s commentary on the relationship
between the paintings and the verses of the Gita is richly nuanced and imaginative. He challenges us to think about how
artists have interpreted India’s sacred texts in radically new ways. Bhalla
argues that these miniature paintings are not mere illustrations of Krishna’s
divine discourse and that Allah Baksh’s
work is a morally significant visual guide to the Gita, as each painting is a
unique moment of revelation.
Chandra Prakash Deval’s fine translation of
the Gita from Mewari into Hindi is a valuable addition to our understanding of
the history of cultural exchange between the different regions and languages of
India.