I recently bought this art piece from an auction house here in Vermont. Who doesn’t love chimeras and other hybrid creatures? They’ve been cropping up in my own work as well.
Like most art, seeing it in person reveals more. A gilded gold crown and elephant, and more detail in the figures than I thought. A lot of love poured into this piece, so I wanted to learn more. And what I learned surprised me.
Composite Miniature Painting
What I first discovered is that the chimera watercolor is part of a genre called “composite miniature painting”, predominantly from India and Persia. The name explains it pretty well: composite, named for the different creatures that make up the whole. Miniature as they’re smaller pieces. Painting, well.
Some examples from this genre:
The intricacies are amazing. These pieces feel like a representation of how intertwined we all are in this thing called life. Boundaries dissolve, and humans mingle with beasts to make a whole out of many. Plus, it must have been a fun challenge or even a spiritual practice for the creators.
Buraq
I quickly learned that the particular piece I bought is one of many like it. It likely depicts Buraq, the mount of the Prophet Muhammad that flew him to heaven. One mystery solved. It seems to be a copy of, or at least heavily influenced by, this masterpiece.
Differences lie in the execution of technical mastery and style.
In Al-buraq, a blend of cultures reveal themselves:
This stunning ‘buraq’, a highly revered creature, is a symbol of the fusion of styles in Deccani painting. This depiction shows many traditions including Central Asia, Turkey, Iran and the indigenous.
How interesting that a blended composite figure of tearing beasts and contemplative humans is also a mix of human experiences and traditions. But a few similarities are shared between the Buraqs.
In the middle of the composite figure, an elephant stands firm while the figures bend around it. It looks solid and secure compared to the twisting animals. Its legs surround a big cat’s head. The trunk shelters a deer.
A Serpent’s Tail
The tail of the composite is a knotted serpent. It bites a big cat’s tail that is gnawing on an ungulate. I read it as a visual representation of the circle of life. (Lions included. No hyenas or baboons, alas.) By existing, we devour. We consume.
In these two versions, the serpent becomes more otherworldly with a curved snout and humanlike eyes. I wonder if it’s a mythological beast, I don’t know. (It reminds me of a piggy Moblin from Zelda.)
Fishy Toes
Another similarity in these Buraq composites is the toes. They’re fish or birds. Birds look more clawed. Fishes resemble a paw. A female figure sits below the head – the only human figure in the body of the composite. And finally, in most cases, two human or human-headed figures face one another within the headgear/crown. I wonder what they’re discussing. Mine looks like a couple.
Final Thoughts
I love art you can revisit and find something new to ponder. I find these composite miniature paintings almost meditative. What does the knotted tail mean? What meaning does the positioning of the animals contain, or is it ordered randomness? Why is the only human figure underneath the head?
This one might be my favorite that I found. Please put it on view, The Met. Exquisite.
So, let me know if you know more about this piece. It feels like 19th-century Indian art. The shade of green background is reminiscent. I think it’s watercolor, maybe gouache? I’m not as familiar with South Asian art as I’d like to be, but this was a fun journey to start me off.
Read More:
- https://artsandculture.google.com/story/composite-paintings/PAVR2JdNNKmIjQ
- https://publicdomainreview.org/essay/out-of-their-love-they-made-it-a-visual-history-of-buraq
- https://nationalmuseumindia.gov.in/en/collections/index/13
- https://publicdomainreview.org/essay/out-of-their-love-they-made-it-a-visual-history-of-buraq
