Women with lanterns and fireworks celebrating the festival of Diwali.

Gouache painting on paper.

By Nainsukh
Pahari School
Guler Style
1760-1763 (circa)

Nainsukh (painter/draughtsman; Indian; Male; 1710 - 1778; approx)

Also known as: Nainsukh; Nain Sukh

Biography:
Painter; son of the artist Pandit Seu, Nainsukh hailed from a family of artists, and he most likely trained under his father. His brother Manaku was also an artist working at Guler, while Nainsukh’s two sons Ranjha and Nikka worked for Raja Raj Singh of Chamba for twenty years, carrying on this family style. This Seu family style can be traced to several of the hill states – as it travelled, it incorporated learned stylistic traits along the way. These influences were garnered from previous compositions, other itinerant artists, and influence from the various patrons as well. The painter Nainsukh moved from the larger court of Guler where he may or may not have trained, to the lesser court of Jasrota, where he found his main patron: Balwant Singh, for whom he work for twenty years. Jasrota was a small state affiliated to the larger state of Jammu. There was no tradition of painting before the arrival of Nainsukh.
- BN Goswamy 1997

Curator's comments - Blurton, R:
Nainsukh (about 1710-1778) is one of the few Indian artists whose names we know from before the modern period. This painting comes from the early period of Nainsukh's work, when he was at the court of Guler, where his father and his brother were also painters.

Cameron, AM:
This painting is heavily influenced by the Awadi style. This can be seen in the pronounced single-point perspective, detailed depiction of architecture and tall, conical hats worn by several of the women in attendance. See the earlier post for a preparatory drawing based on this work by a follower of Nainsukh.

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