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Lot Essay
Keshav Das, a Brahmin in Bundelkhand, was the court poet of Raja Madhukar Shah of Orchha. He wrote his famous love poem Rasikapriya in 1591 AD. The Rasikapriya seems to have been a favourite with Kangra patrons. Several nayaka - nayika paintings from Kangra depicting Krishna and Radha, the ideal lovers, are based on and inscribed with the texts of the Rasikapriya. The style of painting and the colors employed by Kangra artists for these depictions of love and longing manage to convincingly convey the richness and sweetness inherent in the lyrical texts of Keshav Das.
Uyka nayika, or the heroine who anxiously awaits her absent lover, depicts a distressed woman seated on her pavilion waiting for her lover who fails to return home. She holds out her finger to feel the initial raindrops of an impending storm, as her confidante advises her to retire for the night. The anxiety is highlighted by the bustling rainclouds and grey evening sky.
The now dispersed Kangra Rasikapriya series from which this painting originates is a large series speculated to have included as many as 200 folios. Several artists from the workshop of Purkhu, including the master artist himself, contributed to paintings in the set. There are now fourteen paintings from the Kangra Rasikapriya in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum (acc. nos. IM.74-1912, I.M.156-1914, I.M.157-1914, and I.S.43-1949 through I.S. 52-1949). Several other paintings were formerly in the collection of the artist Abdul Rahman Chughtai (1897-1975). Other illustrations from this series have sold at Bonhams New York on 19 March 2012, lot 1186, 14 March 2016, lot 107 and 16 March 2021, lot 338; at Sotheby's New York, 20 March 2013, lots 311, 315 and 318; and at Christie's London, 25 May 2017, lots 74-78, 2 May 2019, lots 92,93 and 95, and most recently 26 June 2020, lots 9, 28, 30, and 67-69. Another painting for this series sold at Christie's New York, 22 March 2023, lot 371 for $37,800.
Uyka nayika, or the heroine who anxiously awaits her absent lover, depicts a distressed woman seated on her pavilion waiting for her lover who fails to return home. She holds out her finger to feel the initial raindrops of an impending storm, as her confidante advises her to retire for the night. The anxiety is highlighted by the bustling rainclouds and grey evening sky.
The now dispersed Kangra Rasikapriya series from which this painting originates is a large series speculated to have included as many as 200 folios. Several artists from the workshop of Purkhu, including the master artist himself, contributed to paintings in the set. There are now fourteen paintings from the Kangra Rasikapriya in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum (acc. nos. IM.74-1912, I.M.156-1914, I.M.157-1914, and I.S.43-1949 through I.S. 52-1949). Several other paintings were formerly in the collection of the artist Abdul Rahman Chughtai (1897-1975). Other illustrations from this series have sold at Bonhams New York on 19 March 2012, lot 1186, 14 March 2016, lot 107 and 16 March 2021, lot 338; at Sotheby's New York, 20 March 2013, lots 311, 315 and 318; and at Christie's London, 25 May 2017, lots 74-78, 2 May 2019, lots 92,93 and 95, and most recently 26 June 2020, lots 9, 28, 30, and 67-69. Another painting for this series sold at Christie's New York, 22 March 2023, lot 371 for $37,800.