National Museum of Asian Art presents paintings From India's Himalayan kingdoms in new exhibition

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art has opened “Of the Hills: Pahari Paintings from India’s Himalayan Kingdoms,” on view from April 18, 2026, through July 26, 2026. Juxtaposing canonical masterpieces and never-before-seen works, the exhibition’s 48 paintings and colored drawings reveal the ingenuity of artists who drew from both local and transregional traditions. For centuries, scores of small Hindu kingdoms dotted the region where the tallest mountains on Earth rose from the plains of north India. Around 1630, their rulers began commissioning paintings that proved extraordinary—some with intricate details, delicate shading and naturalistic figures; others vivid, glittering and stylized. “These paintings are swoon-worthy,” said Debra Diamond, the Elizabeth Moynihan Curator for South and Southeast Asian Art. “Created