Epic tales from ancient India: paintings from the San Diego Museum of Art

Abstract

"Exploring the topic of narrativity in Indian art, this beautiful and deeply researched book considers illustrations to the Bhagavata Purana, the Ramayana, the Ragamala, and a range of texts in the Persian language, notably the Shahnama. Featuring stunning reproductions of paintings made between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries from the Edwin Binney 3rd Collection at The San Diego Museum of Art, the publication includes thorough and fascinating explanations of the narrative of each text, including how that narrative is visually conveyed. Essays examine why these particular stories are so enduring, why patrons may have chosen to have a copy of a particular text made for their own collections, and how artists responded to the challenge of creating new versions of venerable classics"--

Contents

Indian Painting and the Art of Storytelling / Marika Sardar -- Incarnations of the Bhagavata / Neeraja Poddar -- The Ramayana and Other Tales of Rama / Marika Sardar -- Stories of Music, Love, and the Seasons: Ragamala Paintings / Marika Sardar -- Persian-Language Literature in India / Qamar Adamjee -- The Shahmana in India / Alka Patel.