National Museum of Asian Art Presents “Delighting Krishna: Paintings of the Child-God”

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art has announced “Delighting Krishna: Paintings of the Child-God,” an exhibition highlighting monumental paintings called pichwais opening March 15 and remaining on view through Aug. 24, 2025. These paintings play a central role in the religious practices of the Hindu Pushtimarg community, who engage with the divine by caring for and delighting the child-god Krishna. Collectively, the artworks in this exhibition convey the philosophical and emotional resonance of the Pushtimarg tradition as well as the creative ingenuity of its artists. This exhibition is part of “The Arts of Devotion,” a five-year initiative at the National Museum of Asian Art dedicated to furthering civic discourse and understanding of religion.

For the first time since the 1970s, 14 newly conserved pichwais from the National Museum of Asian Art’s collection will be on view together. Dating from the 18th to the 20th century, most were painted in Nathdwara, Rajasthan, the global epicenter of the Pushtimarg community. Alongside the pichwais, the exhibition features exquisite court paintings and mixed-media works on paper that further illustrate the Pushtimarg tradition and Krishna’s personality. “Delighting Krishna” includes works from the Kenneth X. and Joyce Robbins Collection and the museum’s South Asian and Himalayan collection, which holds over 1,200 objects.

Pichwais, from the Hindi word for “behind,” are traditionally displayed behind icons of Krishna in three-dimensional displays, along with music, food and flowers. Painted with vivid pigments and gold on cotton, these paintings average 8-by-8 feet in size. The scenes depicted on pichwais evoke momentous events from Krishna’s life on Earth in a cowherders’ village. For Pushtimarg devotees, pichwais act as a bridge between ordinary life and the transcendent.

The Pushtimarg tradition was established in the early 16th century by the sage Vallabha (1479–1531). In this tradition, devotees gain spiritual insight and joy by taking care of and delighting the child-god Krishna. As a Hindu god, Krishna manifests in many ways, but the Pushtimarg community in India and throughout the global Hindu diaspora focuses on his most emotionally accessible forms—as a baby and child. The paintings in this exhibition show Krishna playing his flute, dancing, causing mischief and heroically protecting his community.

“As the National Museum of Asian Art begins its second century, we are committed to collaborating with communities beyond our four walls,” said Chase F Robinson, the museum’s director. “Through our partnership with the Pushtimarg community, we have the remarkable opportunity to share their unique traditions with the public. ‘Delighting Krishna’ contextualizes our exceptional collection of pichwais through not only scientific and historic perspectives but also the personal perspectives of people who encounter works like these in their everyday lives.”

A collaborative approach to curation distinguishes this exhibition. The museum’s curators, conservators, scientists and designers partnered with Hindu community members, including Pushtimarg leaders and devotees, who shared what the paintings mean to them. In addition, the exhibition features material analyses from a three-year campaign of restoring the pichwais and analyzing their pigments and cotton supports. Visitors will encounter the artworks from multiple angles through insights from devotees, scholars of religion and art history, conservators and a conservation scientist.

“The Pushtimarg tradition is joyous, and that impacted the process of creating the exhibition,” said Debra Diamond, the museum’s Elizabeth Moynihan Curator for South Asian and Southeast Asian Art. “We brought everyone together on numerous occasions to share our individual forms of expertise, look at artworks and exchange ideas over good meals. It was a joyful and creative process, and I think that everyone will feel that delight when they visit the exhibition.”

“The process of conservation and scientific analysis allowed us to see the hand of all the individuals involved with the pichwais over time, both as they were initially painted and repaired over the years,” said conservator Jennifer Bosworth and conservation scientist Jennifer Giaccai. “It was a unique opportunity to study so many of the pichwais in the collection and visualize the changes that occurred in pichwai manufacture and preservation over the 19th and 20th centuries.”

The museum will hold events to complement and celebrate the exhibition. A community day featuring gallery tours and family activities will take place March 30. On May 16 and June 20, Giaccai will give talks about the scientific tools used to analyze the pichwais. Diamond will give a talk about the exhibition April 24. The museum will announce more talks and tours related to “Delighting Krishna” in the months to come.

About the Arts of Devotion

“The Arts of Devotion” is a five-year initiative at the National Museum of Asian Art funded by Lilly Endowment Inc. This initiative aims to further civil discourse around religion through the museum’s collections of Hindu and Buddhist art and arts of the Islamic world. “The Arts of Devotion” includes four exhibitions and a learning resource that explore different expressions of belief, behavior and belonging.

The initiative focuses on the religions of Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam. These religions are living traditions that have origins in the broad geographic area of Asia and are now global religions found in numerous countries, including the United States. “The Arts of Devotion” engages with communities from these religious traditions and with other key communities to help deepen the museum’s ability to tell stories about these artworks.

Credit

“Delighting Krishna” is part of The Arts of Devotion, a five-year initiative at the National Museum of Asian Art dedicated to furthering civic discourse and understanding of religion. This program is made possible by Lily Endowment Inc.

About the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art is committed to preserving, exhibiting, researching and interpreting art in ways that deepen our collective understanding of Asia and the world. Home to more than 46,000 objects, the museum stewards one of North America’s largest and most comprehensive collections of Asian art, with works dating from antiquity to the present from China, Japan, Korea, South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Islamic world. Its rich holdings bring the arts of Asia into direct dialogue with an important collection of 19th- and early 20th-century American works, providing an essential platform for creative collaboration and cultural exchange between the United States, Asia and the Middle East.

A 1906 gift from Charles Lang Freer paved the way for the museum’s opening in 1923, and today the National Museum of Asian Art is a leading resource for visitors, students and scholars in the United States and internationally. Its galleries, laboratories, archives and library are located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The museum is free and open to the public 364 days a year (closed Dec. 25), making its exhibitions, programs, learning opportunities and digital initiatives accessible to global audiences.

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