These colorful paintings and drawings from Rajasthan, in rural northwest India, are populated with gods, humans, and animals in dramatic and sometimes amusing interaction. They were made for Rajputs, members of the second Hindu caste. Selected from the collection of Stuart Cary Welch and introduced by his lively essay “Where the Peacock Dances,” they date from the fifteenth through the nineteenth century and reflect historical changes in style and theme as well as distinctions in approach among different Rajput kingdoms.

The catalogue, which accompanies an exhibition at the Drawing Center in New York (April 16–June 7, 1997), includes an introduction by Ann Philbin, a foreword by James Cuno, a checklist of the exhibition (75 works), and a bibliography.