Mar
30

Monsoon Mood

We think of paintings as art, but can they also be a source of historical and scientific data? Three centuries ago, a young prince inherited the throne in Udaipur, India, and brought with him some newfangled ideas about art.

Graphic for Sidedoor 9.3 Monsoon Mood
Digital art for SIdedoor 9.3 after Maharana Fateh Singh crossing a river during the monsoon Shivalal, ca. 1893 Opaque watercolor and gold on paper Sheet, 82.6 × 158.8 cm The City Palace Museum, Udaipur, 2012.19.0038

His court artists created massive paintings that flew in the face of convention, documenting real life events, times, places and even emotions—especially during the annual monsoon season. These paintings are so detailed that—centuries later—they can serve as archival records to help understand our own changing climate.

This time on Sidedoor, we’re getting our feet wet in an exhibition that explores two hundred years of monsoon paintings from Udaipur, India — a place with a special connection to the rains.

Indian painting of a tiger hunt
Maharana Jagat Singh II hunting tiger at Tikhliya Magra. Pyara and Naga, son of Bhagwan, ca. 1735. Opaque watercolor and gold on paper, 75.7 x 102 cm. The City Palace Museum, Udaipur, 2012.20.0011

Guests

  • Debra Diamond, Elizabeth Moynihan Curator for South Asian and Southeast Asian Art at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art
  • Dipti Khera, associate professor, Department of Art History and Institute of Fine Arts, New York University
  • Mark Giordano, professor of geography and vice dean for undergraduate affairs at Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Service 
Indian painting od man in rain gear walking through heavy rain
Prince Amar Singh II walking in the rain. Attributed to the Stipple Master (Active 1692-1715), ca, 1690 Sisodia dynasty. Opaque watercolor and gold on paper, 34.4 x 21.3 cm. Purchase and partial gift made in 2012 from the Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection — Charles Lang Freer Endowment. Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art.

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Links and Extras

Indian painting of a palace seen from above
Maharana Amar Singh II in Udaipur during a monsoon downpour, ca. 1700, Sisodia dynasty. Opaque watercolor and gold on cloth, 108 x 175.7 cm. Purchase and partial gift made in 2012 from the Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection — Charles Lang Freer Endowment. Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art.

Exhibition

This episode was produced in collaboration with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art’s exhibitionA Splendid Land: Paintings from Royal Udaipur, in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the museum’s founding and the 75th anniversary of Indian independence. 

The exhibition is on view through May 14, 2023.

Painting of lake palace and its residents
Maharana Ari Singh II enjoying Jagmandir Attributed to Jiva and others, ca. 1767 Opaque watercolor and gold on paper Image, 58.3 × 114 cm The City Palace Museum, Udaipur, 2011.18.0037
Indian painting of Rama, Lakshmana, and Sita in the Chitrakuta forest,
Rama, Lakshmana, and Sita in the Chitrakuta forest, folio from a Ramayana Attributed to the Master of the Jagged Water’s Edge, ca. 1680–90 Opaque watercolor and gold on paper Sheet, 25.4 × 40.5 cm Purchase and partial gift from the Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection—funds provided by the Friends of the Freer and Sackler Galleries S2018.1.73
A white palace and garden are offset against a painterly, colorful, cloudy sky.
Sunrise in Udaipur, 1722–23. Udaipur. Opaque watercolor and gold on paper; 82.3 × 152.4 cm. The City Palace Museum, Udaipur, 2012.20.0015 (Detail)


Posted: 30 March 2023
About the Author:

Jessica Sadeq has worked in the Central Office of Public Affairs since June 2007. She is the Marketing Manager for the Office of Communications and External Affairs.