Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2011/12/16
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]In October I had gone to the Government Museum here in Chennai, which arguably has one of the best collection of South Indian Bronzes in the world. One of my favourite subjects for these bronzes is Siva dancing the cosmic dance in his avatar as Nataraja or Natesa - this depiction is IMHO one the most dynamic subjects in Art - the Museum has dozens of these, and this particular piece is the featured one. It is believed that when Siva (The Destroyer) finishes the dance it signifies the end of the weary universe, and setting the stage for Brahma (The Creator) to create the next one. This sculpture is from the Pallava period around the 7th Century AD, which is when this depiction originated. They are all made by the lost wax method, and that has not changed even to this day. We generally do not keep a large bronze of this subject at home, believing that mere humans cannot stand the cosmic energy released on an ongoing basis. I remember my grandfather getting one as a gift, which he promptly gave to a nearby temple, where it is still standing. Anyway, here is the photograph - the equipment used was the Nikon D700 with the AFS Nikkor 16-35 f4G lens, without flash: http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/jayanand/album254/20111008_017MuseumC.jpg.html There are a lot of allusions in these bronzes, and those who are interested can have a quick look: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nataraja Comments and Criticism, as ever, welcome. Cheers Jayanand