Mughal occidentalism: artistic encounters between Europe and Asia at the courts of India, 1580-1630

Abstract

In 'Mughal Occidentalism', Mika Natif elucidates the meaningful and complex ways in which Mughal artists engaged with European art and techniques from the 1580s-1630s. Using visual and textual sources, this book argues that artists repurposed Christian and Renaissance visual idioms to embody themes from classical Persian literature and represent Mughal policy, ideology and dynastic history. A reevaluation of illustrated manuscripts and album paintings incorporating landscape scenery, portraiture, and European objects demonstrates that the appropriation of European elements was highly motivated by Mughal concerns. This book aims to establish a better understanding of cross-cultural exchange from the Mughal perspective by emphasizing the agency of local artists active in the workshops of Emperors Akbar and Jahangir.

Contents

Mughal tolerance and the encounters with Europe -- Mughal masters and European art : tradition and innovation at the royal workshops -- European articles in Mughal painting -- Landscape painting as Mughal allegory : micro-architecture, perspective and ṣulḥ-i kull -- Concepts of portraiture under Akbar and Jahangir.