MUGHAL

PAINTINGS

How does the Mughal court painting of

OR

Trace the origin and development of the

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Painting is a form of cultural tradition which reflects values,

beliefs, behaviour and provides material objects to understand

people’s way of life. It reflects what people think and want to

show and therefore painting becomes a bridge to our past.

Mughal painting which had its genesis in the 16th century and

continued to evolve and grow till 19th century has evoked

considerable interest among enthusiasts of art all over the world.

The Mughal School of Painting has steadily gained recognition as a

distinctive style of painting which had a rich tradition to fall back

upon, and which reached full maturity during the seventeenth

century. It created a living tradition of painting which continued in

different forms in different parts of the country long after the glory

of the Mughals had disappeared.

The Mughal paintings reflect two types of cultural tradition – ‘high

culture’ and ‘popular culture’. The notion of ‘high culture’ is

equated with the sophisticated elite class with an exclusive taste

and high culture products are not shared by the ordinary people as

they are expensive, artistic and intellectual creations. The ‘popular

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culture’ is usually equated with the common people and products

of ‘popular culture’ are common, cheap and easy to understand.

In the context of Mughal empire, the ‘high culture’ was exclusive

domain of Mughal emperors, their nobles who gave exclusive

patronage to the artists, whereas, the ‘popular culture’ was

associated with aspirations, norms, customs of the general Mughal

society and despite lack of patronage, it continued to survive like

the bazaar paintings. The Mughal era used expensive colours

obtained from minerals and metals.

Painting under Akbar’s period distinguishes itself as a tradition

from Persian painting as well as from Indian styles particularly by

the presence of historical subject matter. Akbar was very fond of

painting and during his reign, painting was organized as an

Imperial establishment or karkhana. The two most commonly

used themes were:

 Daily events of the court

 Portraits of leading personalities

Under Akbar, European painting was introduced at the court by

the Portuguese priests. Abul Fazl praises the skill of the European

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style of painting. However, Indian painters never fully mastered

the art of perspective.

The Mughal painting reached its zenith, during the reign of

Jahangir (A.D. 1605-1627). Soon after his accession, Jahangir

greatly reduced the staff of royal studio and concentrated his

attention on a small number of favourite artists. This step spread

the Mughal style far and wide. Jahangir’s artists developed their

own style, which was quite distinct from the artists of the early

Mughal period. Akbar’s outgoing objectives; purposeful

encouragement of painting was replaced by a more powerful

vision. Use of harmonious designs, softer colours, and fine

brushwork became important part of the style. A shift was seen,

not only in techniques but also in themes.

The School of Jahangir was noted for its love of nature. Several

subjects from animal and bird life were painted during this period.

The emphasis was on naturalism but there was also a keen desire

to reveal the natural beauty.

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He particularly encouraged paintings depicting events of his own

life, individual portraits. Every illustration showed Jahangir as a

serene and untroubled ruler, enjoying full control over the empire.

Divine nature of kingship was a popular theme, during Jahangir’s

period and was projected through symbolic representation in

which European motifs like globe and hourglass played an

important role.

Manuscript illustrations were almost given up but there is little

exception like the Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri. The painting ‘Chain of

Justice’ not only has a physical, political dimension but also a

psychological dimension. It portrays Jahangir as a ‘just ruler’

having a firm belief in the secular tradition.

In the period of Jahangir’s rule, manuscripts became less

important than individual pictures. Milo Cleveland Beach believes

Jahangir, with his personal involvement, may have functioned

effectively as the head of the royal studio. Therefore, artistic

decisions were made by the emperor himself consequently

introducing his own stylistic preferences in the paintings.

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Two important elements in the style of Mughal painting during

the first half of the 17th century have been identified:

 Firstly, Jahangir’s paintings seem to highlight a formalist style,

i.e., making the work realistic and preferring the precise recording

of contemporary reality.

 Secondly, the paintings of this period have broad margins,

which are gorgeously decorated with the depiction of flora and

faces of human figures, etc. designs from plant motifs.

Tradition continued under Shahjahan (1628-58 AD) but on a

limited scale as he was more inclined towards

architecture. Harmonious blend of colours, aesthetic sense, realism

which were traits of Jahangir’s style was replaced by the

decorative style. Special attention was given to the art of border

making and lavish use of golden and other rich pigments.

Shahjahan was a great patron of architecture, but he did not

neglect the painting. Under him, the previous tradition of doing

portraits preparing albums, and illustrating books, was continued.

Additionally, we find the paintings depicting charming love

scenes and portraits of female members. Another important theme

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chosen for painting was super imposition of animals and the

scenes of performing acrobats.

Although, Mughal painting continued to develop technically, it

however became static, cold and stereotyped. Painting lost its

liveliness and was confined to the durbar (court). Themes like

musical parties, lovers on the terrace and garden, etc. abound in

the Mughal paintings of this period. Even in the illustrated copy

of the Padshahnama, preference was given to the durbar scenes,

while in a few outdoor scenes the expressions were weak and

dull. Bichitr, Balchand, Payag, Muhammad Nadir, etc. were some

of the important artists at the court of Shah Jahan.

The decline of painting, which began in the period of Shah Jahan,

became distinct in the reign of Aurangzeb. Aurangzeb’s neglect of

painting led to a dispersal of the artists to different places of the

country which helped in the development of painting in the state

of Rajasthan and the Punjab hills. The Rajasthan Style of Painting

combined the themes of earlier traditions of Western India or Jain

School of Painting with Mughal forms and styles. Thus, in

addition to hunting and court scenes, it had paintings on

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mythological themes such as the dalliance of Krishna with Radha,

or the Barah-masa (seasons).

Painting was essentially a court art-loss of royal patronage, closing

of the royal ateliers did contribute further to its decline but at the

same time it did not stop altogether. It became confined to the

studios of nobles, princes of royal blood and was less naturalistic

in comparison to the court paintings. Being closely based on the

Mughal style, these are often termed as sub-imperial paintings

or bazaar paintings. This form of painting was inexpensive, less

time consuming and meant largely for common man who used it

for decorative purpose. However, the technical qualities of the

Mughal style were sustained. Aurangzeb’s portrait with Shaista

Khan and a hunting scene are among the finest Mughal paintings

of this period.

Later Mughals did not possess the spirit of Jahangir. A brief

revival was noticed during the reign of Mohammad Shah (A.D.

1719-48). By the time of Shah Alam (A.D. 1759-1806), the art of

Mughal painting had lost its glory.

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In South India, the artist continued to work in traditional ancient

format. The paintings were generally done on wall murals, to

make manuscripts more colourful and interesting, miniature

paintings, and paintings on cloth, wood, glass and ivory. The

artists used bold and vibrant colours and their composition was

filled with ornamented figure. Most of the themes of paintings

were religious in nature or based on royal members who

patronized south Indian painting.

Deccan Paintings were far removed from realism but here the

artists combined delicate rhythms of Persia, lush sensuality of

South, along with exotic elements borrowed from Europe and

Turkey. The theme of Deccan paintings was based more on love,

music, and poetry rather than on realities of life.

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 Conclusion

To conclude, the Mughal paintings had three important aspects:

1. Firstly, they depicted self-consciousness of human beings

2. Secondly, they reflected technical refinement

3. Thirdly, they were fundamentally secular in nature based on

physical observation and psychological insight.

Thus, the Mughal Style of Painting clearly reflects growth of new

culture traditions based on changing lifestyles of people and ruling

classes. Mughal paintings became the symbol of new Mughal

royalty, grandeur and their political power as well as their

authority. They also reflected Mughal cultural values where

attempts were made to create standards of high culture through

diffusion of different styles of painting.

Hence, the Mughal era of cultural development could be termed as

period of cultural renaissance in history of medieval culture.

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