Handpainted – Pichwai – Shrinathji with Four Gopis at the Lotus Ghat

Provenance

'Shrinathji with Four Gopis at the Lotus Ghat' is a Pichwai painting in which the deity stands in a garden shrine above white steps leading down to a lotus pond. It follows the Nathdwara arrangement of a frontal Shrinathji flanked by attendants, and the steps at the foot of the picture give it a gentle sense of depth and descent.

Shrinathji stands in a pale niche with a dark-blue face, a peacock-feather crown and a raised left arm holding a coral cloth, wearing a skirt of blue, green, pink and yellow bands with pearl strands and a petal garland, and a pink lotus at his side. On the left, one woman raises a white feather whisk and another carries a tray; on the right, one raises a whisk and another holds a peacock-feather fan. Two peacocks cross the grass, and white stepped ghats lead to the water below.

Green, coral, blue and saffron form a bright palette, with the white steps and the pale niche as quiet, open spaces. The sheer, dotted skirts of the women give the figures a light, airy quality. A yellow border of pink and blue flowers frames the scene. It is a balanced, cheerful painting for a living room, an entrance or a prayer room.