TSM Accession: 1307
Pleach No: PIF/000DMP4
Title: Mother and Child in a Balcony
Style: Golconda School – Deccani Miniature
Artist: Unknown
Medium: Watercolor on paper
Dimensions: 14.5 x 22.5 cms
Period: 16th-17th century CE
Rights: Telangana State Museum, Hyderabad
Documented by: Pleach India Foundation, Hyderabad
The painting, likely commissioned to demonstrate affection between a Begum and her child playing on a terrace, combines profile and three-quarter views of the figures in a traditional style.
The woman stands close to her child, her head covered by a fully decorated golden dupatta, which she supports with her right hand. She is visualised lowering her gaze to her child, as he looks in the other direction.
A portrait of a Begum and her child playing on a terrace evokes a sense of nostalgia. The Decani characteristics are relatively conventional. In this painting, the artist expresses affection and creates a beautiful contrast between the costumes and the background, along with an exceptional composition.
The woman stands close to her child, her head covered by a fully decorated golden dupatta, which she supports with her right hand. Her jewelry is extravagant, featuring earrings, necklaces, bangles, and well-modeled pearls. She wears a green and yellow cloak with a red pai jama and golden mojadis (shoes).
As she lowers her gaze to her child, the Begum’s son is portrayed wearing a gold-plated conical cap and a white jama with gold borders. In his hands, he holds a game made with two sticks and a colorful spinner. This painting, most likely commissioned to express the affection and care between mother and child, presents both a profile and a three-quarter view of the figures in a traditional style. The scene includes a grill, a fountain, and a garden, while the backside of the figures is artistically depicted with a tree.
