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Garden and Cosmos Exhibition –
The Royal Paintings of Jodhpur
Garden and Cosmos: The Royal Paintings of Jodhpur is a rare opportunity to view a unique type of Indian royal court painting ranging in date from the 17th-19th centuries. The 54 paintings on display have remarkably, not previously been seen outside India until the exhibition. The paintings are on loan from the royal collection at the Mehrangarh Museum Trust in Jodhpur, which was set up by the current maharaja, Gaj Singh II, in 1972. Garden and Cosmos explores the two distinct styles of painting which flourished over the period represented in the exhibition - on the one hand the ornate style depicting the temporal pleasures of courtly life and the verdant forests where scenes from the epics took place (‘Garden’) and, on the other, the metaphysical paintings concerned with philosophical speculation and the origin of the universe (‘Cosmos’).

The paintings were created for the personal pleasure of the maharajas who ruled over this part of north-western India. As such, they represent the varying aesthetic tastes and differing political and spiritual views of three generations at the Jodhpur court. The styles are specific to the Jodhpur region and are not found elsewhere in Rajasthan.

The first part of the exhibition centres on the paintings created for Bakhat Singh (1725-1751), depicting the pleasures of the royal court - the prince is shown in his fort-palace at Nagaur with its lush gardens surrounded by flowering forest; this section also includes vibrant illustrations of the great Indian epics, especially of the Ramayana. In this category the two paintings which show the crashing monsoon storms and the crossing to Lanka are especially thrilling.

The second part of the exhibition focuses on the paintings which originated during the long reign of Maharaja Man Singh (1803-1843), Bakhat Singh’s great-grandson. A fervent devotee of the Nath yogis, a religious sect, he commissioned more than 1,000 paintings to illustrate metaphysical concepts - and also to establish the political legitimacy of this esoteric group. In their subject matter, the paintings turn away from the glowing exterior world of court life and instead address the interior world of philosophical speculation and the origin of the universe. The new subject matter naturally demanded new artistic approaches. In painting after painting, the artists of this era demonstrate incredible versatility in their attempts to represent Hindu concepts and texts visually.

Thus, the paintings in this extraordinary exhibition, ranging from glorious gardens in desert palaces to opulent images of cosmic origins, depict the political, cultural and spiritual vitality of Jodhpur and indicate the sophisticated way in which artists conveyed profound spiritual conceptions. Although the precise meaning of some of the final paintings is unclear, the large fields of distinctive, brilliantly coloured wave patterns remind the viewer that surrender to blocks of pulsating colour is not a 20th century western invention.

Garden and Cosmos: The Royal Paintings of Jodhpur is organised by the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, in collaboration with the Mehrangarh Museum Trust. The exhibition has also been on view at the British Museum and the Seattle Art Museum.

Garden and Cosmos – The Royal Paintings of Jodhpur
Venue: Art Gallery of NSW, Sydney
Dates: 29/10/09 – 26/01/10
Official Site: www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au

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