Living with Gods: Popular Prints from India
Join us for the following in-person programs related to the Focus Exhibition. For programs requiring advance registration, you may register online or call Guest Services, at 937-223-4278, during regular museum hours. Be sure to also explore the downloadable interactives. Check back often for updates and new information!
IN-PERSON
Calendar Art from India and Sri Lanka in the Collection of the Dayton Art Institute
Date: October 28, 2 – 3 p.m.
Cost: Free for museum members; included in price of general admission
Location: Leo Community Room
In the late nineteenth century, an Indian artist trained in the realistic painting style of the British rulers transformed the visual culture of India. Earlier painters often emphasized flat perspective systems and limited color palettes in contrast to the naturalistic spatial conventions and colors introduced by the Europeans. The adoption of the printing press fostered a technological revolution that enabled the mass publication of such paintings, which were often used to illustrate calendars that were easily accessible to the broad population.
This talk explores the history and subject matter of such prints and the role they played in sustaining Hinduism and other indigenous religious traditions during a time of great cultural change.
About the speaker:
Dr. Susan L. Huntington is a Distinguished University Professor, Emerita at The Ohio State University. A specialist in the art of ancient India, her research has focused on the Buddhist and Hindu traditions in particular. Among her numerous publications is Leaves from the Bodhi Tree: The Art of Pala India (8th–12th Centuries) and Its International Legacies (with John C. Huntington), a pioneering work that continues to serve as the standard on the subject today. It doubled as the catalog for the exhibition of the same name, organized in partnership with the Dayton Art Institute and hosted here in 1989. Over the course of her career, Professor Huntington has been honored with numerous distinctions and awards, including from the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, the Fulbright Award program, the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Smithsonian Institution. With John C. Huntington, she is a founding Director of The John C. and Susan L. Huntington Photographic Archive of Buddhist and Asian Art at the University of Chicago.
M. K. Sharma (Indian, active 20th century), Vasudeva Crossing the Yamuna River with the Infant Krishna, about 1960–1970, offset lithograph on paper. Gift of Susan L. Huntington, 2022. 40.88