This painting comes from a series illustrating the Gita Govinda, a poem describing the love between Krishna and his consort, Radha. It is thought to be part of the so-called “Second Guler Gita Govinda,” which was completed by the sons or grandsons of the renowned painters Nainsukh and Manaku between 1775 and 1780. The figures in this series occupy a lush, riverine landscape dotted with delicate songbirds and a variety of carefully rendered trees and flowers. It is a perfect setting for the moments of tenderness and introspection that make up the Gita Govinda.
Details
- Title: Folio from a Gita Govinda series: Balarama Diverting the River Jamuna
- Date: c. 1780
- Medium: Opaque watercolor on paper
- Dimensions: painting: 15.5 x 25.2 cm. (6 1/8 x 9 15/16 in); painting (with blue borders): 17 x 27 cm. (6 11/16 x 10 5/8 in); sheet: 17.5 x 27 cm. (6 7/8 x 10 5/8 in)
- Credit Line: Norton Simon Art Foundation, from the Estate of Jennifer Jones Simon
- Accession Number: M.2010.1.32.P
- Copyright: © Norton Simon Art Foundation
Object Information
- Pal, Pratapaditya, Painted Poems: Rajput Paintings from the Ramesh and Urmil Kapoor Collection, 2004, Fig. 5 pp. 13, 173
- Campbell, Sara, Collector Without Walls: Norton Simon and His Hunt for the Best, 2010, cat. 1025 p. 364
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