Temple Kamasan Painting

Bali
19th / early 20th century
Cotton, crushed mineral pigments
86 x 65 cm / 34 x 25.5 in
$8,000

Ex Fischer Collection

The Garuda is a mythic bird of great size and power and serves as the mount of the Hindu deity Vishnu. Known to have stolen waters of the elixir of Life to save his mother, the Garuda is greatly venerated in Bali as brave and with a good heart and yet forever in a battle with his serpent enemies, the Nagas. This relatively large-scale Garuda depiction is particularly rich in iconography, and is painted on both sides of the canvas in an early Kamasan style with crushed mineral pigments. Joseph Fischer wrote extensively on Balinese art and Indonesian textiles.