Lunch with Emma at Selfridges. She is dressed in her smart work clothes, me not so smart but not too tatty either. Everything seems to be continuing well with her internship and she is optimistic that she will be offered a job for when she finishes at Cambridge. I mentioned that I was currently reading a book by a Trinity academic and it turns out that she is Emma's tutor, even though she is a historian of science (Kusukawa's The Transformation of Natural Philosophy is the book in question)
Then to the British Museum for the Garden and Cosmos show - the Royal Paintings of Jodhpur. This is a set of 56 pictures from the Royal Collection of the Mehrangarh Museum in Jodhpur from the Royal courts and painted in the 17th to 19th Centuries. I was supposed to be seeing this with my friend Fiona but she is moving back to Australia this week and various last minute problems stop us meeting, which was a great shame. Fiona is going back to University - something I always approve of.
The show has some marvellous pictures. I particularly like the sequence of pictures of Maharaja Bakhat Singh. He is always painted in the same rather stern profile (as virtually all the people are) surrounded by 20 or so female companions. The pictures titles the say that he is "revelling" or "enjoying" or "rejoicing", yet he has this stern expression. None the less, in one picture he is undoing the sari of his companion, in another he is bathing and holding a water pistol so he can soak his female companions with coloured water, and in another three pairs of ducks are shown mating as a hint to what will be happening when the Maharaja has finished enjoying the musical performance of his female companions - and he has the same stern expression each time! Being Maharaja looks like a lot of fun.
Another sequence of pictures of Krishna and the Gopi girls is also really good.
There are also some more "cosmographical" pictures showing various creation sequences and even some hatha yoga pictures. A fine contrast to the various Maharaja pictures.
Overall, an excellent show, spoilt only by the amazingly high cost of the shows guide book (> £30, amazing) which I therefore didn't buy
Maharaja Bakhat Singh and Zenana Women savour the moonlight evening
Maharaja Bukhat Singh rejoices during Holi (as one would do surrounded by bathing beauties and armed with a water pistol!)
Krishna frolics with the Gopi Girls
Jallandhamath and the Princess Padmini fly over King Padam's Palace
The Creation of the Cosmic Ocean and the Elements
Krishna frolics with the Gopi Girls
Jallandhamath and the Princess Padmini fly over King Padam's Palace
The Creation of the Cosmic Ocean and the Elements
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