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| Inscribed across the
page on either side of the standing figure, in Persian, states, “Made
in remembrance of (as a memento for) Mir Wajih-ud Din Muhammad; (the
work of) Muhammad Ali, servant of the emperor Jahangir.” The painter, Muhammad Ali, endows the figure of the young woman with great allure: the innocence in the face, the elegance of her dress, the indolent stance, all melt into one another. It is difficult to believe that this portrait was painted from observation; therefore, she more accurately belongs to a generic type frequently used by Persian painters and poets. But the painter invests her with an almost individual charm: one hand on her hip, she leans her head to the side a little absentmindedly, as if lost in wistful thought; with the other hand, however, she moves one end of her peshwaz (gown) aside ever so lightly, revealing her tight paijama (trousers). She is “properly” and carefully dressed, her choli (blouse) revealing nothing, a long dupatta (veil) firmly draped across her chest, and a flowing phenta (waistcloth) falling to cover the space between her parted legs.  (For Grades 3-5) What is an emperor? The artist painted this for the emperor Jahangir. Do you think the emperor knew this woman? How might he have known her? Do you think this painting was done from observation or from memory? Why? How old does the woman look? How can you tell? |
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Muhammad Ali India, 17th century A Beauty In A Garden Setting Opaque watercolor ink and gold on paper, mounted as an album page, ca. 1625 Edwin Binney 3rd Collection 1990:323 © San Diego Museum of Art |
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