The Maiden

On the first viewing itself, the gaze is irressistibly drawn towards the finely chiselled face. This luminous face is well contrasted with the dark background and the jet black hair.

The beautiful lotus-petalled eye, crowned with the well arched eyebrow, and the sharp nose followed by the inviting lips are all pointers to the technical brilliance of the artist.

Her cleavage peeps out over the top of her choli (ancient Indian version of the blouse).

With her left hand she holds a hookah (ancient Indian tobbacco pipe), and in the right is held a rose, surmounted by a bud, which leaps towards her nose, as if inviting her to smell its fragrance. The artist may have been using the symbolism of the bud to remind the viwer of the lady's own virginal aspect.

This painting has been created by a tedious process, which is a combinatiion of painting and embossing. In addition the artist has stuck real pearls and semi-precious gemstones at places to highlight the jewelry of the lady. For example on the rings on her fingers, pearls have been glued with the help of a strong adhesive so that these stones jutt out of the two-dimensional painted surface, giving it a three-dimensional effect.

Shri Gopal Prasad Sharma is a recipient of the rajasthan state national award.

This descripion by Nitin Kumar, Executive Editor, Exotic India.