Detail of The Village Beauty. Probably painted by the artist Fattu (active ca. 1770-1820). Illustrated folio from the dispersed "Kangra Bihari" Sat Sai (Seven Hundred Verses). Punjab Hills, kingdom of Kangra, ca. 1785. Opaque watercolor, ink, and gold on paper; narrow yellow and white borders with black inner rules; dark blue spandrels decorated with gold arabesque; painting 7 3/8 x 5 3/16 in. (18.7 x 13.2 cm), page 8 1/8 x 5 7/8 in. (20.6 x 14.9 cm). Promised Gift of the Kronos Collections, 2015 (SK.082). © The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 

NEW YORK, NY.- Compelling episodes from the epic and poetic literature of the Indian subcontinent dominate the nearly 100 masterful paintings—most a 2015 promised gift by Steven M. Kossak from his family’s Kronos Collections—on display at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Created mainly between the 16th and the early 19th century for the royal courts of Rajasthan and the Punjab Hills in northern India, the works on view in the exhibition Divine Pleasures: Painting from India’s Rajput Courts—The Kronos Collections which opened June 14, are meant to move the soul and delight the eye. Suffused with the powerful imagery of the myths of the past, Indian painting expressed a new way of seeking the divine through bhakti, or personal devotion. The collection was assembled over nearly four decades by Mr. Kossak, formerly a curator in The Met’s Department of Asian Art.  

“We are delighted to present this exhibition of Steve Kossak’s generous promised gift,” said Thomas P. Campbell, Director and CEO of The Met. “These distinguished paintings constitute one of the premier collections of this material in private hands, and their eventual addition to The Met collection will transform the Museum’s holdings of Rajput painting. It is a significant addition to Steve’s legacy at The Met after serving for two decades as a curator.” 

Blindman’s Bluff: The Demon Pralambha Carries Balarama on His Shoulder. Illustrated folio from the dispersed “Isarda”Bhagavata Purana (The Ancient Story of God). North India, probably Delhi-Agra region, ca. 1560–65. Opaque watercolor on paper; yellow and pink border with variously colored rules; page 7 5/8 x 10 3/8 in. (19.4 x 26.4 cm). Promised Gift of the Kronos Collections, 2015 (SK.003). © The Metropolitan Museum of Art.  

The exhibition is organized into three major sections—Early Rajput and Rajasthan, early Pahari (Punjab Hills), and later Pahari. Within each room, the paintings will be shown in relation to the literary traditions of Indian Hinduism. Rajput court painting was mainly intended for royal delectation, to amplify through the artistic fantasy manifest in the pictures, well-known religious, quasi-religious, and secular texts and subjects. The power and magic of the images transcends the subjects they portray.  

The Lovers Radha and Krishna in a Palm Grove Illustrated folio from the dispersed “Second” or “Tehri Garhwal” Gita Govinda (Song of the Cowherds) Punjab Hills, kingdom of Kangra or Guler, ca. 1775–80 Opaque watercolor and gold on paper; red border decorated with gold arabesque, with black inner rules; painting 6 x 9 7/8 in. (15.2 x 25.1 cm), page 7 1/16 x 11 in. (17.9 x 27.9 cm) Promised Gift of the Kronos Collections, 2015 (SK.073) 

Krishna Swallows the Forest Fire. Attributed to the Master at the Court of Mankot (active ca. 1690–1730). Illustrated folio from the dispersed “Upright”Bhagavata Purana (The Ancient Story of God). Punjab Hills, kingdom of Mankot, early 18th century. Opaque watercolor, gold, and silver (now tarnished) on paper; wide red border with white and black inner rules; painting 9 x 6 3/16 in. (22.9 x 15.7 cm), page 11 1/8 x 8 5/16 in. (28.3 x 21.1 cm). Promised Gift of the Kronos Collections, 2015 (SK.057) © The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Under the patronage of their Rajput rulers, many of the principalities of north India developed and nurtured a distinctive painting style. This galaxy of stylistic expression is amply demonstrated in the exhibition through compelling examples of the Early Rajput Style; the later schools of Bikaner, Bundi, Kishangarh, Kota, and Mewar; as well as many of the small courts of the Punjab Hills: Bahu, Bahsoli, Bislalpur, Chamba, Guler, Kangra, Mandi, Mankot, and Nurpur. 

Painted on paper in opaque watercolor and ink, they are often heightened with gold and silver. Whites are often raised to simulate pearls and reflective beetle-wing casings stand in for emeralds. Many of the paintings have never before been exhibited publicly. 

The Lovers Radha and Krishna in a Palm Grove. Illustrated folio from the dispersed “Second” or “Tehri Garhwal” Gita Govinda (Song of the Cowherds). Punjab Hills, kingdom of Kangra or Guler, ca. 1775–80. Opaque watercolor and gold on paper; red border decorated with gold arabesque, with black inner rules; painting 6 x 9 7/8 in. (15.2 x 25.1 cm), page 7 1/16 x 11 in. (17.9 x 27.9 cm); Promised Gift of the Kronos Collections, 2015 (SK.073) © The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The exhibition was organized by Navina Haidar, Curator, and Courtney Stewart, Senior Research Assistant, of The Met’s Department of Islamic Art. Exhibition design is by Daniel Kershaw, Exhibition Design Manager; graphics are by Constance Norkin, Graphic Design Manager; and lighting is by Clint Ross Coller and Richard Lichte, Lighting Design Managers, all of the Museum’s Design Department.  

The Village Beauty. Probably painted by the artist Fattu (active ca. 1770–1820). Illustrated folio from the dispersed “Kangra Bihari” Sat Sai (Seven Hundred Verses). Punjab Hills, kingdom of Kangra, ca. 1785. Opaque watercolor, ink, and gold on paper; narrow yellow and white borders with black  inner rules; dark blue spandrels decorated with gold arabesque; painting 7 3/8 x 5 3/16 in. (18.7 x 13.2 cm), page 8 1/8 x 5 7/8 in. (20.6 x 14.9 cm). Promised Gift of the Kronos Collections, 2015 (SK.082) © The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 

Concurrent with the exhibition is a small, thematically related display, Poetry and Devotion in Indian Painting: Two Decades of Collecting (June 15–December 4, 2016) in the Florence and Herbert Irving Galleries for the Arts of South and Southeast Asia, Indian Painting Gallery, Gallery #251. Recognizing the contributions of Mr. Kossak to the Department of Asian Art, where he was a curator from 1986 to 2006, it features 22 of the dozens of Rajput and Pahari paintings that were acquired during his tenure, including a large intricately painted and printed cloth pichwai (temple hanging).

 A Lady Playing the Tanpura. India (Rajasthan, Kishangarh), ca. 1735. Ink, opaque and transparent watercolor, and gold on paper, 18 1/2 x 13 1/4 in. (47 x 33.7 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Fletcher Fund, 1996. © The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Raja Balwant Singh Revering Krishna and Radha. India (Himachal Pradesh, Jasrota), ca. 1745–50. Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper. Overall: 7 3/4 x 6 1/8 in. (19.7 x 15.6 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rogers Fund, 1994 © The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Krishna Revels with the Gopis: Page from a Dispersed Gita Govinda (Song of the Cowherds). India (Madhya Pradesh, Malwa), ca. 1630–40.Opaque watercolor and silver on paper, 4 1/2 x 8 in. (11.4 x 20.3 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Cynthia Hazen Polsky and Leon B. Polsky Fund, 2003.  © The Metropolitan Museum of Art.