A Uniquely Canadian
South Asian Gallery

Sarpech Turban Ornament, Possibly Rajasthan, India, Gold, diamonds, rubies, emeralds, enamel
from the Sir Christopher Ondaatje South Asian Gallery, Royal Ontario Museum
Title: Sarpech Turban Ornament, Mughal Period, 18th Century
Possibly Rajasthan, India
Medium: Gold, Diamonds, Rubies, Emeralds, Enamel 969.271.9
Jewelry has a long history as an important part of many cultures. Until the 1880s and the discovery of diamonds in South Africa, India was the world's only source. Diamonds drew distant visitors to South Asia's shores and the Indian courts were known for their wealth in precious gems. Specific examples of jewelry on display here were worn only by men and others only by women. The turban ornament, for example, was exclusively for the adornment of the king.
Image Courtesy: Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto

Sir Christopher Ondaatje South Asian Gallery, Royal Ontario Museum
Title: Sir Christopher Ondaatje at the South Asian Gallery bearing his name, Royal Ontario Museum
Image © International Art Treasures

It spans 5,000 years of history with objects from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka and Tibet. Found at Toronto's Royal Ontario Museum, (ROM), the Sir Christopher Ondaatje South Asian Gallery showcases the Canadian spirit of inclusion.

“This gallery is uniquely Canadian,” said Sir Christopher Ondaatje. “While conflict exists in many parts of the world, here in Canada we have created a tremendously diverse South Asian gallery, with Canada’s varied South Asian communities and the ROM matching my initial support. What an achievement! It is to this ideal that I pledged a further $1 million. Canada is the great United Nations experiment, and it is working.”

from the Sir Christopher Ondaatje South Asian Gallery, Royal Ontario Museum
Title: Palampore textile panel depicting Tree of Life (detail), Early 18th century
Coromandel Coast, India
Medium: Painted and Resist-Dyed Cotton Tabby with Gold Leaf
934.4.13 Harry Wearne Collection, Gift of Mrs. Harry Wearne This elaborate floral textile, known as a chintz or palampore, was produced specifically for the European market. Indo-European palampores constitute one of the most articulate expressions of hybrid design in the early modern period. The design is hand-painted and resist-dyed, then gold leaf appliqué is added. The flowering tree motif on most palampores is a design combining Persian, European, Indian and Chinese visual traditions based on the tree of life.
Image Courtesy: Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto

Model of the Jaipur Gate from the Sir Christopher Ondaatje South Asian Gallery, Royal Ontario Museum
Title: Model of the Jaipur Gate, c. 1898
Jaipur, Rajasthan, India
Medium: Padauk Wood, Dark Stain
2001.23.1 Gift from the Estate of C. Anthony Law This model was given to Major-General Victor Edward Law, former resident of Jaipur, by the Maharaja. In the late 19th century, the Maharaja of Jaipur was the patron of a new art school for the revival of traditional handicrafts. Models such as this were produced and often exported. This intricately carved work was likely meant for display on the mantle of a European home. The model came to Canada when Law migrated here and it was passed down through generations until it was given to the ROM by his great nephew.
Image Courtesy: Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto

William Thorsell, the ROM’s Director and CEO acknowledged the donor's generosity. “The ROM is grateful to Sir Christopher Ondaatje, whose ongoing support has again enabled the ROM to bring more of its objects out of its collections areas and into the public eye, where they belong. The ROM’s South Asian collection is particularly renowned and, thanks to Sir Christopher, visitors to the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal will delight in old favorites and come to appreciate brand new highlights.”

Head of a Bodhisattva from the Sir Christopher Ondaatje South Asian Gallery, Royal Ontario Museum
Title: Head of a Bodhisattva,
Gandhara, possibly Taxila, Pakistan
Medium: Stucco
Kushan Period, 4th - 5th century
939.19.1 Gift of Dr. C.T. Currelly
Stucco sculpture, which was originally painted, came mostly from the regions of Hadda and Taxila in modern Afghanistan and Pakistan. This monumental head is rare in its scale and the complete figure likely stood six metres tall. The symmetrical features, delicate curls and serene expression of the bodhisattva were meant to inspire awe in devotees
Image Courtesy: Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto

The ROM is a home for world cultures and while each piece has significance some do stand out such as the Head of a Bodhisattva that came from the Gandhara region of Pakistan.

Second only to the Buddha, the Bodhisattva is the second most popular symbol of art celebrating Buddhism. A Bodhisattva is a Buddhist saint who has successfully completed the ten degrees of perfection necessary to achieve nirvana. However, a Bodhisattva does not become a Buddha, instead he remains on earth to relieve the suffering of others in an act of selflessness.

Jamini Roy is an important inclusion in a Gallery celebrating Indian art. His first success came as a portraitist but he turned from that looking to Bengali peasant art for inspiration. Success didn't come, in fact he entered a period of great poverty forced to create his own artistic materials from whatever resources were at hand.

Jamini Roy's Untitled (Dancing gopi) from the Sir Christopher Ondaatje South Asian Gallery, Royal Ontario Museum
Title: Untitled (Dancing gopi), c. 1950s
Artist: Jamini Roy (1887 - 1972)
Kolkata, Bengal, India
Medium: Gouache, Cardboard
2004.37.1 This purchase was made possible with the support of the South Asia Research and Acquisition Fund Jamini Roy was one of the fathers of modern Indian art, a leading painter in India’s nationalist art school in Kolkata. His works combine South Asian folk art traditions and international modernist aesthetics. This painting is one of Roy’s iconic images of an Indian woman. With arms raised and feet crossed, her pose evokes a sense of dance. She recalls other representations of the female form in South Asia's past, from nature divinities and goddess sculptures to images of Krishna's gopi and even Mother India.
Image Courtesy: Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto

Roy had a significant impact on Indian art having a strong following in his homeland and achieving international acclaim.

Balustrade with a Yali from the Sir Christopher Ondaatje South Asian Gallery, Royal Ontario Museum
Title: Balustrade with a Yali 16th century
Kandy area, Sri Lanka
Medium: Dolomite, Traces of Pigment
2006.86.2 Acquired with the generous support of the Louise Hawley Stone Charitable Trust This sculpture is from a pair that once flanked a staircase to a temple or palace. It depicts a mythical animal called a Yali, which is part lion and part dragon. Yalis link the earthly realm with that of the gods. In this capacity, they often grace entrances of sacred or important sites, serving as a symbolic transition from the outside world to the inner space.
Image Courtesy: Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto

Likely to catch the visitors eye is the beautiful Sri Lankan balustrade. At first glance it appears to depict a lion but it is actually a Yali; a mythical beast from Hinduism. It has a lion's body with the tail of a dragon or serpent. The Yali was often found at the entrances to temples and other important buildings believed to protect and guard all who passed through the doors.

Title: Shiva Nataraja (Lord of Dance)
late Chola Period -early Vijayanagar Period 12th - 14th century
Tamil Nadu, India
Medium: Bronze
938.44
This powerful image of the Hindu God Shiva depicts him as the Lord of Dance, or Nataraja. Shiva is performing his cosmic dance of bliss that brings both destruction and creation. The dance is a metaphor for the spiritual journey, the goal of which is release from the cycle of rebirth. This image would have been housed in a temple and regularly brought out for processions.
Image Courtesy: Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto

The Ondaatje Gallery has over three hundred and fifty artifacts celebrating South Asian culture.

Sir Christopher Ondaatje South Asian Gallery
Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto:
Permanent Gallery

Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto

www.rom.on.ca

A Uniquely Canadian South Asian Gallery

© 2008 International Art Treasures Web Magazine, All Rights Reserved.

A Uniquely Canadian
South Asian Gallery