Pichwai from The Deccan - Polychrome Gold & Silver Leaf - 1980's

This vibrant Pichwai painting from the Deccan, dating to the 1980s, depicts Krishna surrounded by gopis in a richly detailed devotional scene. Executed in a traditional polychrome palette highlighted with gold and silver leaf, it showcases the enduring legacy of Pichwai artistry—an art form historically created as backdrops for temple shrines dedicated to Shrinathji.

The composition is filled with exquisite detail: Krishna stands serenely at the centre playing his flute, adorned in lavish jewellery and textiles, while the gopis present offerings of flowers and fans. Above them, dense flowering trees shelter an array of birds—parrots, peacocks, and other fauna—adding movement, colour, and narrative depth. At the base, a lotus-filled river borders the scene, animated with ducks, swans, and curling lily pads.

The surface has developed gentle craquelure and patination, giving the work a soft, time-worn luminosity. Decorative, devotional, and visually opulent, this Pichwai is a striking example of late 20th-century temple painting from the Deccan region.

• Origin: Deccan, India
• Date: 1980s
• Materials: Polychrome pigments with gold and silver leaf on cloth
• Features: Krishna with gopis, flowering trees, birds, lotus river border, intricate leaf embellishment
• Condition: Light craquelure and patination consistent with age
• Dimensions: W145 x H96 cm