1971.135: Krishna Swims with the Gopis (painting, recto), possibly an illustration from the Bhagavata Purana

Identification and Creation

Object Number

1971.135

Title

Krishna Swims with the Gopis (painting, recto), possibly an illustration from the Bhagavata Purana

Classification

Paintings

Work Type

painting

Date

mid-19th century

Places

Creation Place: South Asia, India, Northern India, Pahari Region

Culture

Indian

Persistent Link

https://hvrd.art/o/215670

Physical Descriptions

Medium

Opaque watercolor and gold on paper

Dimensions

23.18 x 16.51 cm (9 1/8 x 6 1/2 in.)

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line

Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of John Kenneth Galbraith

Accession Year

1971

Object Number

1971.135

Division

Asian and Mediterranean Art

Contact

am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu

Permissions

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Descriptions

Description

In this painting, the blue-skinned Hindu god Krishna swims alongside a group of gopis (milkmaids) in a river. The setting is probably the town of Vrindavan where Krishna spent most of his early adulthood. The painting here seems to illustrate one of the many versions of the episode from the Bhagavata Purana, where Krishna steals the clothing left on the banks of the river by the bathing maidens, and hides the clothes on a tree. Here, he is shown to be teasing the gopis, holding on to one as she tries to playfully get away. The concept of Hindu devotional worship (bhakti) is alluded in the adoring eyes of the other gopis, gazing with warm love-laden eyes, praying for union with Krishna. In the distance, on the left, is a cow shepherd with his cattle; in the center is a priest at a shrine; and in on the right are several women surrounded by piles of laundry. Rajput, Pahari.

Publication History

• Stuart Cary Welch and Milo Cleveland Beach, Gods, Thrones, and Peacocks Northern Indian Painting from Two Traditions, exh. cat., Harry N. Abrams, Inc. (New York, NY, 1965), page 105/figure 72

Exhibition History

• Out of the Hills: Miniature Painting from Himalayan India, Harvard University Art Museums, Fogg Art Museum, Cambridge, 05/26/1984 - 07/08/1984
• Ambassador's Choice: The Galbraith Collection of Indian Painting, Harvard University Art Museums, Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 02/15/1986 - 04/06/1986
• Gods, Thrones, and Peacocks - Revisited: Northern Indian Miniatures from two Traditions, Fifteenth to Nineteenth Centuries, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 03/31/1990 - 06/10/1990
• From India's Hills and Plains: Rajput Painting from the Punjab and Rajasthan, 17th through 19th Centuries, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 09/04/1993 - 10/31/1993
• Rasika, the Discerning Connoisseur: Indian Paintings from the John Kenneth Galbraith Collection, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 01/31/1998 - 04/05/1998
• 32Q: 2590 South and Southeast Asia, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 04/15/2024 - 10/28/2024

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