Miniature. ‘Four Women in a Palace Garden’
Although the style of painting that emerged from the dominant Mughal court had a major influence on art in the rest of India, regional schools developed at the same time in the many Hindu states and elsewhere.
This exotic and atmospheric miniature from Bundi simply radiates the heat of a tropical night. The garden’s vegetation, especially the lush trees, could have inspired the French naivist Henri Rousseau. The four women stand like gaily adorned flowers, enjoying the evening while they await the master of the house, who seems to be symbolized by the peacock with tail spread out. Sounds in the background are the crackling of the “Roman candles,” the quacking of the ducks, and the distant creaking of the waterwheel.
This exotic and atmospheric miniature from Bundi simply radiates the heat of a tropical night. The garden’s vegetation, especially the lush trees, could have inspired the French naivist Henri Rousseau. The four women stand like gaily adorned flowers, enjoying the evening while they await the master of the house, who seems to be symbolized by the peacock with tail spread out. Sounds in the background are the crackling of the “Roman candles,” the quacking of the ducks, and the distant creaking of the waterwheel.