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The mighty Persian warrior Rustam; the Israelite prophets Joseph, Moses, and Elijah; the Christian Messiah; the Mughal emperors Babur, Humayun, and Akbar; and the women of the harem; Mughal paintings tell the stories of these figures from epic poetry, holy texts, and the real-life history of the Mughals, one of the greatest empires of the early modern period. Captured in this unique art form, Mughal paintings blend Persian and Indian themes and styles, along with Central Asian and European elements. The results are works of great beauty: intense, delicate, detailed, luxurious, and unique.
This, the third volume in a series dedicated to the Cleveland Museum's light-sensitive treasures, casts new light on these stunning paintings—splendid works of wisdom and delight. The provenance, publication history, and technical information of each manuscript painting is also accompanied by full transcriptions of Persian and Arabic calligraphy.
Sonya Quintanilla is the George P. Bickford Curator of Indian and Southeast Asian Art at the Cleveland Museum of Art.
Catherine Glynn Benkaim is a former curator of Indian Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
Pedro Moura Carvalho is chief curator of the Asian Civilizations Museum in Singapore.
Marcus Fraser is an independent Islamic art consultant and specialist in Islamic calligraphy.
Mohsen Ashtiany is an associate research scholar at Columbia University.
Ruby Lal is professor of South Asian Studies in the Department of Middle Eastern and South Asian Studies at Emory University, Atlanta.
"By stressing historical and literary narratives, the authors of this important study have brought welcome new light to the superb collection Indian painting at the Cleveland Museum of Art. This great collection has now been expanded by recent acquisition of the respected Benkaim Collection of Mughal and Deccani Art, works that are also thoroughly catalogued in this volume. Mughal Paintings—Art and Stories is a stimulating and richly rewarding discussion of perhaps the most popular aspect of the arts of India"—Milo Cleveland Beach, art historian and the former director of the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and the Freer Gallery of Art.
Sonya began her wok at the San Diego Museum of Art in 2004. During her tenure there, Sonya curated the groundbreaking exhibition Rhythms of India: The Art of Nandalal Bose, which involved a partnership with the National Gallery of Modern Art in New Delhi and was also shown at the Philadelphia Museum of Art in 2008. Her exhibition Into India: South Asian Paintings from The San Diego Museum of Art was on view at the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum of Art in Madrid through May 20, 2012.
Quintanilla completed her PhD at Harvard University where her dissertation focused on early Indian sculpture.
Preface & Acknowledgments
Painting, Patronage, and Propaganda in Mughal India by Marcus Fraser
Rustam: Images of a Persian Epic Hero by Mohsen Ashtiany
Joseph, Moses, and Elijah by Catherine Glynn
Messiahs, Prophets, and Jesuits at the Mughal Court: Christ and His Life as Literary and Visual References to Akbar and Jahangir by Pedro Moura Carvalho
The Story of the Mughals in India by Sonya Rhie Quintanilla
From the Inside Out: Spaces of Pleasure and Authority by Ruby Lal
Catalogue of Mughal and Deccan Paintings from the Catherine Glynn Benkaim and Ralph Benkaim Collection at the Cleveland Museum of Art by Dominique DeLuca
Epilogue: The Story of Catherine Glynn Benkaim, by Sonya Rhie Quintanilla
About the Authors
Bibliography
Index