Divulging beauty of Mughal artistic culture and traditions

The capital city of India, New Delhi, has served for centuries as a major cultural center of North India for more than a millennium in different incarnations. This exhibition focuses on the 18th century to the mid-19th century.

The new show at New York, NY-based Asia Society looks to examine Mughal artistic culture and traditions in the 18th-19th century period. It highlights the interwoven nature of European, Mughal and regional patronage networks within which the then Delhi artists operated. Around 100 objects and artworks include works by court artists Nidha Mal and Chitarman, and some less familiar works by those like Ghulam Murtaza Khan, Mazhar Ali Khan and Ghulam Ali Khan.

‘Princes and Painters in Mughal Delhi, 1707-1857’ covers the late albeit flourishing reign of the Mughal kings. At the height of their rule, they ruled over much of the land, which today comprises Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and India, They found the city of Shahjahanabad (now known as Old Dehli), way back in 1648. The exhibit traces their rise and decline, coinciding with the spread of British rule.

Beyond distracting from the exquisite images, though, the material in this display often makes for some fascinating juxtapositions. Wall texts depict tales of imperial intrigue and blodd-filled violence, while paintings alongside depict elegant interiors, exquisite courtly figures, and serene landscapes. You can get to see this opulence in the earliest pictures.

A number of emperors frequently used the paintings for assert a sort of false feeling of Mughal stability that met with traffic ends. Farrukhsiyar from around 1715, for instance, was imprisoned and strangled.

In addition to Mughal miniatures done under later emperors — Muhammad Shah (who reigned 1719–1748) right up to Bahadur Shah ‘Zafar’ (ruled 1837–1858) — this exhibit highlights a vast selection of Company School paintings that were produced for Delhi-based personalities like William Fraser, Thomas Metcalfe and James Skinner. Select photography, decorative arts and drawings are also included.

Guest curators of the exhibition are William Dalrymple and Yuthika Sharma.