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Maharaja: The Splendour of India's Royal Court, an exhibition designed by Urban Salon for the V&A, opened to the public on 10 October 2009. The exhibition explores the world of the Maharajas and their unique rich culture and features over 250 objects including howdahs, palanquins, the Patiala Necklace, a pearl carpet, a 1927 Rolls Royce Phantom and photographs by Man Ray.
The exhibition opens with a large-scale portrait of Maharana Amar Singh II displayed on a 5-metre high 'gold leaf' wall, which evokes the opulence of India's royal courts in the 18th century. It continues with a recreation of an Indian royal procession complete with a life-sized model elephant adorned with animal jewellery, textiles and trappings and surmounted with a silver howdah. A 12 metre-wide video projection provides a backdrop to the procession. Created in-house by Urban Salon, the moving image is made up from archive footage of Indian processions, and was digitally manipulated and abstracted to form a slow motion evening procession.
In the Shifting Power section, five staggered glowing backlit maps appear to overlap into a row when entering the gallery, reflecting the complex histories and overlapping dynasties of past ruling maharajas.
In the Raj section, suspended banner strips of red taffeta suggest the tents and canopies of the royal ‘Durbar’ festivals.
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The banners form a ceiling compressing the tall gallery space and framing views of vast traditional paintings of the outdoor festivals.The atmosphere and appearance of the exhibition changes dramatically as it enters the final Gallery. Here, brushed aluminium display panels, curved Art-Deco influenced object cases and vibrant pink walls to reflect the relationship that the Maharajas had with the European avant-garde.
We worked alongside lighting designers DHA and graphic designers, Wood McGrath. Sound artist Janek Schaefer developed the exhibition soundtrack using recordings of traditional Indian instruments, classical Indian music, and 1930s jazz era songs. The exhibition attracted over 150,000 visitors (averaging 1,600 visitors a day) and was one of the V&A's most popular temporary exhibitions.
The Times (5 October 2009):"This is a very classy exhibition, displaying the V&A's ability at its best, with the help of some rare loans, to tell the story of a complex and important political and cultural evolution through the objects it engendered. Prepare to be dazzled."
The Independent (19 October 2009): "It would be difficult to find a more visually ravishing show than this in the whole of London."
The Victoria and Albert Museum
BBC preview
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