- Title
- Celebrations of the Watersport Festival (Jalakrida) of Radha and Krishna
- Date Made
- 1850
- Period
- 19th century
- Medium
- Opaque watercolor, gold, tin alloy, and ink on paper
- Dimensions
- Image: 11 1/8 x 8 1/4 in. (28.26 x 21.0 cm); Sheet: 12 7/8 x 9 3/4 in. (32.7 x 24.77 cm)
- Accession Number
- AC1999.127.40
- Collecting Area
- South and Southeast Asian Art
- Curatorial Notes
The inscription in the upper border states, “This picture of the water journey (jala-yatra) of Shri Gopalji [Krishna] was painting on the fifteenth day of the lunar half of the month of Jyaishtha [May-June] in the year 1907 of the Vikrama era [1850 C.E.]. The picture is by the hand of Pagachotu(?).” (Translated by Naval Krishna.). Although the term jala-yatra in the inscription is commonly translated as a water (jala) journey (yatra), which typically refers to a boating scene, “yatra” can also refer to a festival or ritual ablution. Accordingly, this scene likely represents a domestic Watersport Festival of Krishna known as Jalakrida Ekadashi or Apara Ekadashi, which is celebrated in the month of Jyaishtha.
Lifesize images of the blue-skinned Krishna fluting and his consort Radha are installed in a pool of water on an altar platform with sprinkler nozzles shooting jets of water into the air around them. Mango and banana trees surround the altar. The divine couple are flanked by two sculptures of cows culturally associated with Krishna. The front of the altar displays ritual objects: a water ewer, offering bowls and a tray, and two oil lamps used in ceremonies. Two pan quids are placed on the viewer’s right side of the altar. Offerings of mangoes and coconuts are shown on the floor in front of the altar. A priest holding a seed (?) offering stands to the left of the altar. The family commissioning the observance and a group of musicians are seated in the elegant marble veranda.
- Selected Bibliography
- Pal, Pratapaditya; Markel, Stephen; Leoshko, Janice. Pleasure Gardens of the Mind: Indian Paintings from the Jane Greenough Green Collection. Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Mapin Publishing Pvt. Ltd.: Los Angeles, 1993.
