"One of the great masterpieces of world art was really given rise to by the openness of the Muslim mind."
Curator Navina Haidar on "Krishna Holds Up Mount Govardhan to Shelter the Villagers of Braj", Folio from a Harivamsa (The Legend of Hari (Krishna)).
Featured artwork:
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/448183
Throughout 2013, The Met invited curators from across the Museum to each talk about one artwork that changed the way they see the world.
Photography by Peter Zeray
Subscribe for new content from The Met: https://www.youtube.com/user/metmuseum?sub_confirmation=1
#TheMet #ArtExplained #Art
The details in this painting of Krishna reflect cross-cultural open-mindedness | Art, Explained
"One of the great masterpieces of world art was really given rise to by the openness of the Muslim mind."
Navina Najat Haidar
2 min. watch
Contributors
Navina Najat Haidar
Curator, Department of Islamic Art
Curator, Department of Islamic Art
More from The Met
How do works in The Met collection trace the shifting associations of blonde glamour in Western art?
Lynda Nead
February 2
The author of After Sappho offers a queer feminist reading of Eve and the serpent, reimagining sin as likeness, desire, and bodies transcending gender and species.
Selby Wynn Schwartz
January 9
Author Leena Krohn reflects on Helene Schjerfbeck’s portrait of Sigrid Nyberg.
Leena Krohn
December 18, 2025
Art Mentioned
A slider containing 1 items.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.