Seated Woman

During the Crown Raj period, toward the end of the nineteenth century, Rajasthani nobles often commissioned paintings modeled after European portraiture to attest to their status. With the advent of photography in India, local artists increasingly employed photographs as painting aids, appropriating studio photography’s compositional and stylistic elements, as is evident in this portrait. Seated in a Victorian chair among Roman columns, lush drapery with heavy tassels, and a plush, meticulously rendered emerald carpet, this Begum (an honorific title given to an aristocratic woman) is surrounded by modern luxuries that reflect European tastes. As befits a young Begum, the subject’s pose is formal and demure. Her elaborate jewelry conveys her wealth and stature: in particular, the portrait pendant of the Maharaja reflects the common practice among Rajputs to wear necklaces bearing the likeness of their family’s patron deity to indicate clan identity.