The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 26, 2024

The Birth of Krishna, from a Sursagar of Surdas (Indian, c. 1480–1580)

The Birth of Krishna, from a Sursagar of Surdas (Indian, c. 1480–1580)

1705–10
Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper
Image: 33.6 x 22.2 cm (13 1/4 x 8 3/4 in.); Overall: 37 x 25.4 cm (14 9/16 x 10 in.); with mat: 49 x 36.3 cm (19 5/16 x 14 5/16 in.)
Edwin R. and Harriet Pelton Perkins Memorial Fund 1984.65
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

Many poets in Udaipur styled themselves as "Surdas."

Description

The blind poet and Hindu saint Surdas (1578/79–c. 1581), a devotee of Krishna, is shown in the hut at the lower right corner playing cymbals to measure meter as he recites his poem, called Sursagar. Verse 5 is written at the top of the page, and the scenes of festivities surrounding the arrival of the newborn Krishna are depicted throughout the rest of the painting. His adoptive mother Yashoda lies with the infant in the chamber at the upper left. His dark skin led to his being named Krishna, meaning dark, and shown as blue. Women clamor at her door to see the baby, as the men of the village receive silver coins being distributed on behalf of Nanda, the village elder and Krishna’s adoptive father, who is seated at the left receiving two well-wishers. Below, men and children of the cowherd village celebrate by pouring pots of curds and ghee over each other and dancing to the sounds of horns and drums.
  • 1984–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Tōyō kaiga no seika: tokubetsuten: Kurīvurando Bijutsukan no korekushon kara [東洋絵画の精華: 特别展: クリーヴラント美術館のコレクションから= Highlights of Asian painting from the Cleveland Museum of Art]. Nara, Japan: Nara National Museum, 1998. Mentioned and Reproduced: p. 29, cat. no. 8
    Hawley, John Stratton. Sūrdās: Poet, singer, saint. Delhi: Primus Books, 2018. Reproduced: p. 277, fig. 7.28, and 33rd page of color plates; Mentioned: p. 276-78.
    Diamond, Debra, and Dipti Khera, eds. A Splendid Land: Paintings from Royal Udaipur. Munich, Germany: Hirmer Publishers; Washington, DC: National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, 2022. Reproduced: No. 56, p. 237; Mentioned: pp. 234, 242, 244, 345–346.
  • Main Asian Rotation (Gallery 245). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (January 5–April 27, 2015).
    Indian Miniature Rotation (Gallery 115). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (February 20–August 18, 2004).
    Indian Miniature Rotation (Gallery 115). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (February 4–August 5, 2003).
    Highlights of Asian Paintings from The Cleveland Museum of Art. Nara National Museum (organizer) (February 21-March 29, 1998); Suntory Museum of Art (April 28-June 21, 1998).
    Dance of the Gods: Indian Art Inspired by Music. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 24-December 8, 1996).
    Year in Review for 1984. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (April 3-May 5, 1985).
  • {{cite web|title=The Birth of Krishna, from a Sursagar of Surdas (Indian, c. 1480–1580)|url=false|author=|year=1705–10|access-date=26 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1984.65