Cleveland Museum of Art
Krishna Vanquishing the Crane-Demon Bakasura
- Date
- late 1700s
- Medium
- gum tempera and gold on paper
- Culture
- Southern India, Andhra Pradesh, Tirupati
- Department
- Indian and Southeast Asian Art
- Institution
- Cleveland Museum of Art
The Hindu god Vishnu incarnated himself as Krishna in response to pleadings from the Earth goddess to rid her of a wicked king. The king sent demons of many forms to assassinate Krishna, who effortlessly destroyed them. The South Indian artist effectively used a diagonal composition to show the cause and effect of Krishna’s assault and the fall of the defeated demon. The true form of the crane-demon tumbles out from the backside of the distressed bird.
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