Many adjectives are commonly associated to describe the Mughals ? and it is no small testament to their aesthetic ability that among the most frequent would be words like magnificent and opulent. It is as much a tribute to their political acumen as to the artistic achievements that have lasted to this day all across the subcontinent.
Mughal Style: the Art And Architecture of Mughal India has George Michell explaining the intricacies of what made this aesthetic such a success across centuries, backdrops and regions. ?Drawing on the arts of the wider Islamic world, yet firmly rooted in Indian traditions, Mughal style permeated every aspect of the lives of the Mughal emperors, their nobles and members of the private households. It influenced their manners and courtly etiquette, the dishes they used and the wine cups they drank from; their rich apparel and gorgeous jewelry; the opulent interiors of their palaces, covered in magnificent carpets and hung with brocades; the majestic monuments that proclaimed their wealth and might. As if excellence were not enough, each emperor aspired to a greater or lesser degree to perfection itself.?
It is no surprise that the West has been fascinated, and hooked, for a long time. Though considerable work of late is being done by Indian scholars on aesthetic aspects, it is nowhere near the love and attention that legions of their western counterparts have brought to the study of the Mughals, especially the aesthetic aspects. An R Nath or a Karl Khandalavala aside, it is names like MC Beach, Ebba Koch, Catherine Asher, Mark Zebrowski and many others that have contributed immensely to our understanding of the influences and shapes of the Mughal style.
There is hardly any novelty in either the subject or the way it has been discussed here. But nevertheless the book is a treat ? for the balanced presentation the extreme close-ups of the works of art, often overlooked by the sheer grandeur of size. Starting with a brief chronological introduction of the dynasty that ruled most of India for 250 years, it delineates major milestones in architecture as well as other art forms. An easy read, it does not add to the academic understanding of the subject, but rather overwhelms with opulence ? an extremely rich tapestry of colour, materials, objects, surfaces, textiles, motifs.
It is interesting to compare and trace the Timurid and Persian influences, despite which the distinct Mughal style too always stood out, especially when the arch met the jharokha, or master Hindu painters like Basawan painted in kitabkhanas. Later European influences, whether in the form of minute, exquisite pietra dura work, or the larger effects of Renaissance, also crucially shaped the aesthetic. The section on artistic sources and influences is detailed, and for those interested, one can go and look at the original works, especially in architecture, to see the way the forms have taken shape. Glimpses of Mughal ateliers and the many multiple arts fused under the Mughals always makes for interesting reading, as literature and storytelling, calligraphy and portraiture (even if for animals and birds rather than humans), jewellery, mirrorwork, carpets, inlay and stone work and many others combined to form a unique amalgam. Even the Mughal arms are not spared profuse ornamentation, however unaesthetic their purpose may have been!
The book brings out too the heady amalgam of materials ? not just marble and sandstone, but gold, jade, ivory, mother-of-pearl, lapis lazauli, ruby, pearl, copper, silver, enamel, diamond, glass, emerald, even fossiled stones from central India are found far from their places of origin, and shaped with precision yet allowing for a fluid, three-dimensional life-like quality. Geometry and arabesque find entire chapters to themselves, and the examples whet the interest to see the actual works.
There is an extensive documentation which lists where the visuals are taken from. But this is a good place to start a rediscovery of Mughal art, as living objects steeped in legend and history.