Wonderful Thing: Indian Fly Whisk
This Mughal Dynasty (mid-18th c.) fly whisk is on view in the MFAH’s Indian art galleries. It’s an outstanding object which alone merits a visit to the museum. The MFAH purchased it in 2009, at the time of the opening of the Indian art gallery.
The handle is a remarkable example of ivory carving, but what’s even cooler is that the “hairs” of the whisk are themselves shaved ivory. The whole thing is about 30″ long. Go see it.
also by Rainey Knudson
- On Institutional Cowardice: The Menil Collection - January 12th, 2013
- On the Ubiquity of "Porn" - October 30th, 2012
- On Art, Economic Impact, and the Dark Side of Free Market Capitalism - September 28th, 2012
- David Shelton moves to Houston - July 26th, 2012
- Suffer a Sea Change: Art in Galveston, 2012 - July 12th, 2012
It’s amazing what you can do with dead elephants.
In the 18th century it wasn’t poaching, it was art.