A Universal Vision—Creative Synthesis of European Prints and Indian Paintings at the Mughal Court

European prints became a key source of inspiration for artists at the courts of Akbar (r. 1556–1605) and Jahangir (r. 1605–27) in northern India. Mughal painters adopted this foreign vocabulary but made it their own by incorporating local style and techniques and by adding iconographic elements that would be meaningful to a pluralistic audience. The result of this innovative synthesis is not merely a Europeanized mode of painting but a vision linked to Akbar’s religious universalism and the global connections of the Mughal court. Curatorial fellow Janet O’Brien will guide visitors through a new installation in Gallery 2400 that features Mughal paintings and drawings that capture this new visual idiom.

This gallery talk is part of our New on View series, highlighting recent gallery installations and presenting new insights into recent acquisitions or old favorites.

Led by:
Janet O’Brien, Calderwood Curatorial Fellow in South Asian and Islamic Art, Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art

Please check in with museum staff at the Visitor Services desk in the Calderwood Courtyard to request to join the gallery talk. Space is limited, and talks are available on a first-come, first-served basis; no registration is required.

You may also like the following events from Harvard Art Museums:

• This Thursday, 12th June, 12:30 pm, Gallery Talk: Wilhelm Lehmbruck’s Head of a Thinker in Cambridge
• This Saturday, 14th June, 11:00 am, Second Saturdays Story Time in Cambridge
• Next Tuesday, 17th June, 12:30 pm, Gallery Talk: The Artist’s Toolbox—Experiments with Color in the Solomon Collection in Cambridge

Also check out other Arts events in Cambridge, Fine Arts events in Cambridge.