RAS question
Bikaner school of painting shows influence from:
Correct answer: (C) Mughal and Deccani schools.
The Bikaner school of painting shows the influence of the Mughal and Deccani schools.
Explanation
Bikaner painting is best understood as a court style shaped by Mughal contact and Deccani exposure. The British Museum describes Bikaner paintings as works from the court of Bikaner, with the earliest examples dating to the late 16th century. Its scope note says Bikaner rulers may have invited Mughal artists into their courtly retinue, and that the Bikaner workshop later expanded to include several Mughal artists. It also links Deccani influence to Bikaner's role as a Mughal vassal whose rulers were involved in campaigns in the Deccan. That explains why the style is associated with a Mughal-Deccani blend, visible in the refined brushwork, gold use, colouring and compositional format.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Japanese woodblock does not fit Bikaner painting, which is located within Mughal and Deccani artistic influence by the British Museum Collections Online.
- (B) Chinese painting is not part of the documented influence; the documented influences are Mughal artists at Bikaner and Deccani colouring and composition.
- (D) European Impressionism is too modern for this court style, whose earliest Bikaner examples date to the late 16th century and whose influences are Mughal and Deccani.
Concept
This tests the RAS art-and-culture theme of Rajasthan painting schools and their stylistic influences. It recurs because court patronage, Mughal contact and regional exchange are standard ways RAS frames miniature-painting questions.