swirl ring

India's Bharti Dayal demonstrates a mother's unconditional love for her child in the this charming folk painting. The artist uses brushes, sharpened reeds, and pen nibs with acrylic on handmade paper to create the stylized appearance of the two figures and the swirling bird and flower designs that surround them.

Lord Buddha sits in repose as he preaches his teachings to the eager disciples who surround him. India's Bharti Dayal uses brushes, sharpened reeds, and pen nibs with acrylic on handmade paper to create the stylized appearance of Buddha and the swirling nature motifs that surround him.

Marveling at a garden of flowers and peacocks, Hindu Goddess Radha and Supreme God Krishna leave a trail of love and compassion emblematic of their eternal bond. Inseparable since their love began, Radha and Kirshna exist within each other, making their existence mutually inclusive. Their pure consciousness in the garden scene demonstrates their inner peace, symbolized by each flower, swirl and bird. Krishna's leftward-facing peacock feather crown alludes to the presence of two peacocks who mirror their respective deities, with one looking right and the other left. Each vine of the garden spirals into its own unique shape, providing foliage and a home for colorful flowers and little birds. Kirshna becomes one with this garden, mingling with the spiral vines, seemingly floating across the scene. Bharti Dayal paints 'Eternal Love of Radha Krishna' in a two-dimensional contemporary style to concentrate on narrating one of Hinduism's greatest love stories for a modern audience.

"Madhubani paintings are in fact a simplistic manifestation of the philosophical heights achieved by Indian civilization for the universal power of love, longing and peace; the quest of all beings," Dayal says.

In a dreamlike world of harmonious nature, Hindu deity Krishna merges with representations of green land and blue water, depicted wearing a bird feather crown and holding a flute. To his side, a swirling and bifurcating tree ascends to the heavens, laden with the songbirds of divinity. A series of eyes line the trunk of the tree, watching the faithful as they perform their eternal duties. Among the most revered and celebrated of the Hindu deities, Krishna plays a central role in the lives of followers of Hinduism. Bharti Dayal paints 'Divine Eye of Krishna' in the traditional Madhubani style, popularized in 1967 following the great famine of the Mithila region, utilizing outlined two-dimensional shapes painted in solid, vegetable dye hues to create a fantastical aesthetic without the distraction of perspective.

"Madhubani paintings are in fact a simplistic manifestation of the philosophical heights achieved by Indian civilization for the universal power of love, longing and peace, the quest of all beings," Dayal says.

Love and kindness swirl with the prevailing winds of graceful Radha, the Hindu Mother Goddess and consort of God Krishna. Prominently standing out from the turquoise-blue sky and floral backdrop, Radha blissfully celebrates her role as chief consort of the Gopies together her closest friends, the Ashtasakhis. Reinterpreting the iconic Madhubani style of painting endemic to the region of Bihar, Indian artist Bharti Dayal paints 'Radha with Gopies' to consciously tell the story of her culture's origins, assigning each detail its own intellectual meaning. Internationally recognized for her resurrection of the Madhubani style which had previously suffered poor quality and a lack of originality, Dayal works to perpetuate classic themes beyond the scope of mere folk art while avoiding the mundane nature of contemporary recreations.

"Madhubani paintings are in fact a simplistic manifestation of the philosophical heights achieved by Indian civilization for the universal power of love, longing and peace; the quest of all beings," Dayal says.