Divine Pleasures: Painting from India's Rajput Courts—The Kronos Collections

The Village Beauty (detail), ca. 1785. Probably painted by the artist Fattu (active ca. 1770–1820). Illustrated folio from the dispersed "Kangra Bihari" Sat Sai (700 verses of Biharilal). India, Punjab Hills, kingdom of Kangra. Opaque watercolor, ink, and gold on paper; painting 7 3/8 x 5 3/16 in. (18.7 x 13.2 cm), page 8 1/8 x 5 7/8 in. (20.6 x 14.9 cm).
Promised Gift of the Kronos Collections, 2015

The Metropolitan Museum of Art
JUNE 14–SEPTEMBER 12

The Kronos Collection of Indian painting embodies a finely distilled selection of nearly 100 works from the royal courts of northern India, forming a major promised gift by collector Steven M. Kossak to The Metropolitan Museum of Art. These vivid and inspired images—dating from the 16th to the early 19th century and representing almost all major artistic centers of Rajasthan and the Punjab Hills—reflect the meeting of artistic talent, spiritual devotion, and royal taste.

Divine Pleasures celebrates the collection and presents this visual splendor in relation to the rich literary and philosophical traditions of Indian Hinduism.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art