Late 20th Century Todi Ragini Ragamala Rajasthani Indian Miniature, Gouache on Paper

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This Rajasthani miniature depicts Todi Ragini, one of the most frequently painted subjects of the Ragamala, or “Garland of Ragas,” … Read more This Rajasthani miniature depicts Todi Ragini, one of the most frequently painted subjects of the Ragamala, or “Garland of Ragas,” the tradition that gives each mode of classical Indian music a visual and emotional form. A lovesick heroine sits beneath a flowering tree playing a rudra veena. Her music draws a young deer toward her and a peacock down through the branches, while lotus blossoms rise from the river along the lower edge.

The work is painted in gouache on hand-made paper and is a late twentieth-century interpretation of the classic composition. Unlike many later examples, which lavish detail on the figures and sketch in the setting, it gives the whole landscape equal care: each rosette of the flowering canopy is individually drawn, and the restrained, close-toned palette holds the scene together as a single mood. A yellow-ruled header carries a line of handwritten Devanagari script in Braj Bhasha verse, ending with the numeral 6 in the manner of the folio numbers on historical Ragamala sets. The painting is unsigned and measures 2 7/8 by 4 7/8 inches sight. It is presented under glass with a cream mat and brown inner mat in a reeded, distressed gilt frame.

Photographs were white-balanced to a gray card under daylight-balanced lighting; colors may display slightly differently across screens. See less