listening to music at sunset. thumbnail 1
Not currently on display at the V&A

listening to music at sunset.

Painting
early to mid 18th century (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The painting, in opaque watercolour on paper, shows a young man visiting a yogini with two attendant figures in a landscape. The two outer figures of a musician and a kneeling person appear to be by a different hand than the two inner figures which may have been painted at a later date along with the more distant landscape of a lotus pond and buildings on a rocky knoll beyond the rocks in the middle distance. The rocks and the red streaked sunset sky probably were painted at the time of the outer figures. In the foreground there is another pool of water dotted with flowers.
The musician on the left kneels to play a vina. His face is finely delineated and modelled with delicate hatching. He wears a white pugri turban and a pink and green narrowly striped jama crossed over to the right. He has a narrow patka with floral decoration tied at his waist and a narrow white sash loosely wound round his body from his left shoulder. The kneeling figure on the right is robed in orangey-pink with a cylindrical hat of matching colour. The gender of the figure is uncertain. The figure smokes a thin-stemmed pipe with a globular bowl. A yellow cast mark with a red dot in the centre is painted on the forehead of this figure. A peacock feather whisk (chauri) lies in front. Next to this figure, sitting under a tree, is a yogini with a characteristic top knot ornamented with a white flower. She is richly dressed in a green paijama sprigged with red flowers round which is wrapped a yellow meditation band. On her feet she has crimson slippers. She wears pearl anklets and a pearl necklace over a transparent white upper garment and a dark green shawl with floral decorated ends. She has red hennaed tips to her fingers.
The young man who kneels opposite her and gazes at her holds his hands in front of him, possibly clapping in time to the music. He is wearing a brown turban and a yellow jama. Both the inner figures are painted with less modelling and their flesh tones are of a yellowish hue.
The painting has been repaired with a 1 cm-wide strip of paper along the lower half of the right hand side which has been crudely painted to match the rest of the painting.
The painting has a buff narrow border frame with a floral design in gold outlined on either side in white with a gold margin and outer lines in black and blue. The border has a row of alternate pink lilies and red poppies picked out in gold on an ivory-coloured ground with blue paper page margins on the outer edges which match those on the opposite page (IS.48:15/B-1956).
A strip of grey paper has been added on the left hand side as a gutter for the album binding. There are some small remnants of red paint apparent under the blue paper margins. The tips of the petals of the three Lilly flowers along the top edge have been painted over the blue page margin, but the white ruled line has been added over the petals.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Titlelistening to music at sunset. (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Painted in opaque watercolour on paper
Brief description
Painting, Small Clive Album p. 31, listening to music at sunset, opaque watercolour on paper, Mughal, early to mid 18th century
Physical description
The painting, in opaque watercolour on paper, shows a young man visiting a yogini with two attendant figures in a landscape. The two outer figures of a musician and a kneeling person appear to be by a different hand than the two inner figures which may have been painted at a later date along with the more distant landscape of a lotus pond and buildings on a rocky knoll beyond the rocks in the middle distance. The rocks and the red streaked sunset sky probably were painted at the time of the outer figures. In the foreground there is another pool of water dotted with flowers.
The musician on the left kneels to play a vina. His face is finely delineated and modelled with delicate hatching. He wears a white pugri turban and a pink and green narrowly striped jama crossed over to the right. He has a narrow patka with floral decoration tied at his waist and a narrow white sash loosely wound round his body from his left shoulder. The kneeling figure on the right is robed in orangey-pink with a cylindrical hat of matching colour. The gender of the figure is uncertain. The figure smokes a thin-stemmed pipe with a globular bowl. A yellow cast mark with a red dot in the centre is painted on the forehead of this figure. A peacock feather whisk (chauri) lies in front. Next to this figure, sitting under a tree, is a yogini with a characteristic top knot ornamented with a white flower. She is richly dressed in a green paijama sprigged with red flowers round which is wrapped a yellow meditation band. On her feet she has crimson slippers. She wears pearl anklets and a pearl necklace over a transparent white upper garment and a dark green shawl with floral decorated ends. She has red hennaed tips to her fingers.
The young man who kneels opposite her and gazes at her holds his hands in front of him, possibly clapping in time to the music. He is wearing a brown turban and a yellow jama. Both the inner figures are painted with less modelling and their flesh tones are of a yellowish hue.
The painting has been repaired with a 1 cm-wide strip of paper along the lower half of the right hand side which has been crudely painted to match the rest of the painting.
The painting has a buff narrow border frame with a floral design in gold outlined on either side in white with a gold margin and outer lines in black and blue. The border has a row of alternate pink lilies and red poppies picked out in gold on an ivory-coloured ground with blue paper page margins on the outer edges which match those on the opposite page (IS.48:15/B-1956).
A strip of grey paper has been added on the left hand side as a gutter for the album binding. There are some small remnants of red paint apparent under the blue paper margins. The tips of the petals of the three Lilly flowers along the top edge have been painted over the blue page margin, but the white ruled line has been added over the petals.
Dimensions
  • Central painting height: 19.8cm
  • Central painting width: 11.5cm
  • Page height: 35cm
  • Page width: 23cm
Style
Marks and inscriptions
the numeral '16' is inscribed in pencil (top right hand corner of the border)
Credit line
Gift of Mr. John Goelet
Object history
This miniature painting is part of the Small Clive Album of Indian miniatures which is thought to have been given by Shuja ud-Daula, the Nawab of Avadh, to Lord Clive during his last visit to India in 1765-67. It contains 56 leaves on which are Mughal miniature paintings, drawing and flower studies on both sides. It is bound in silk brocade.The album was sold from Powis Castle at Sotheby's sale, 16-18 January 1956, lot 332A
Subjects depicted
Collection
Accession number
IS.48:16/A-1956

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Record createdNovember 27, 2003
Record URL
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