Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is a watercolor painting. It dates from 1850 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
A small crowd of men and women in bright clothes hold flowers and point up at stars and crescent moons. Made in central India around 1850, it blends Hindu astrology with Persian-style watercolor. Every face turns skyward, as if tracking a rare eclipse or comet. The painter is unknown.
Subject & Meaning
The painting, dated 1850 and executed in ink and opaque watercolor on paper, portrays astrological symbols together with a man, a woman, and a flower, all rendered in a religious genre context. Its iconography combines celestial motifs with human figures and a floral element, suggesting an allegorical interplay of cosmic order, mortal presence, and spiritual purity within the depicted scene. The work was created in India and is part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art collection, where it is catalogued as an anonymous religious painting that visually merges astrology, gendered human forms, and botanical imagery.
Technique & Style
The composition depicts astrological symbols alongside a flower, a man, and a woman, arranged in a flattened, decorative manner characteristic of the genre.
The work Untitled (1850) is executed in ink and opaque watercolor on paper, a support typical of 19th‑century Indian religious paintings. Its dimensions measure 18.1 cm by 26.4 cm, as recorded in the Metropolitan Museum of Art catalogue. The composition depicts astrological symbols alongside a flower, a man, and a woman, arranged in a flattened, decorative manner characteristic of the genre.
The anonymous painter employs fine line work with washes of color to outline figures and fill background spaces, creating a balanced, symbolic tableau. No specific conservation records are available, so the current condition remains undocumented.
History & Provenance
Untitled is an ink and opaque watercolor on paper dating to 1850, produced in India by an anonymous painter. The work belongs to the religious genre and portrays astrology alongside a man, a woman, and a flower. It was classified as a painting and entered the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it remains on display.
No record of private ownership or commission exists; the piece was likely created for devotional purposes and later acquired by the museum. Its dimensions are 18.1 cm by 26.4 cm.
The work is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, as recorded in its Wikidata entry. It is catalogued as a painting on paper, executed in ink and opaque watercolor, and dated to 1850. No specific inventory or accession number is provided in the available sources.
Likewise, the documentation does not list any prior or current exhibition history for the piece, leaving its display record unestablished within the cited materials.
Overview
This untitled painting, rendered in ink and opaque watercolor on paper, depicts a gathering of figures observing the night sky. Created in central India around 1850, the artwork captures a moment of collective fascination with celestial events. Brightly dressed men and women are shown holding flowers and directing their gaze and gestures towards stars and crescent moons.
Context
Originating from central India in the mid-19th century, this painting exemplifies the artistic output of the region, particularly areas like Madhya Pradesh. It reflects a period when local artistic traditions absorbed and integrated diverse cultural and stylistic elements, particularly in works related to cosmology and daily life.
Artist & collection
- Untitled
Tantric Manuscript, "Sangrahani Sutra"
Tantric Manuscript "Sangrahani Sutra"
Untitled
Untitled
Tantric Manuscript, "Sangrahani Sutra"
Das Avataras, Ten Incarnations of Vishnu (verso), from a Kalighat album
Tantric Manuscript "Sangrahani Sutra"
Tantric Manuscript "Sangrahani Sutra"
Tantric Manuscript "Sangrahani Sutra"
Das Avataras, Ten Incarnations of Vishnu (verso), from a Kalighat album
Untitled
