In this exhibition, Indian music and paintings fill two of VMFA’s South Asian Art Galleries. The paintings come from ragamalas, sets of pictures that depict musical structures called ragas. Each musical structure has a characteristic progression of notes intended—as the Sanskrit word raga suggests—to “color” the mind and stimulate a distinct emotional response.
Ragamala paintings, in which these musical moods are personified as heroes and heroines in romantic or devotional settings, are organized into groups imagined as families. Typically, a full ragamala series presents a grand cycle of six such families, each associated with one of India’s six seasons.
Various aspects of this multisensory art form are explored in the galleries through 46 paintings and 15 ragas played through loudspeakers. A dozen of the paintings are recent acquisitions being shown for the very first time, and another 20 are new gifts to the collection.
Khambhavati Ragini, mid-17th century, Rajasthan, Bikaner, opaque watercolor on paper. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Arthur and Margaret Glasgow Endowment, 2018.193
Megha Raga, ca. 1730–40, Punjab Hills, Bilaspur, opaque watercolor and gold on paper. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Arthur and Margaret Glasgow Endowment, 2017.24
TOP OF PAGE Vibhasa Ragini (detail), ca. 1720–30, Rajasthan, Bundi, opaque watercolor and gold on paper. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Adolph D. and Wilkins C. Williams Fund, 2016.236