Mighty MAHARAJAS: the book, the colors

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I get the most beautiful books- So many books So little time-and why? I am a book person.
New, Old,
Oversize, Miniature...
you get the picture. I look-I read-read-read and oft times I think why? do we need it? what is its relevance?

A recent book came my way and I was immediately struck by the beauty of the book-of course, but also the beauty of Color-its relevance in Our Lives today. The colors of Mighty MAHARAJAS.

It is a trip I would love to take-INDIA.This book, Mighty Maharajas, is an in-depth look at its forts and palaces written by Amita Baig and photographed by Joginder Singh.We get up-close glimpses of the fortresses that protected-sheltered-lavished- its walls on the Maharaja and his court. Baig writes... "for over 4,000 years, India has withstood social, political & religious turmoil, each era contributing to the spectacle of empire, testimonial of wealth & power each building a fortification against the enemy." The book gives me some resolution for the moment-but stirs the senses to go there, the best a book can do.

Delving deeper, the COLORS of the Maharajas palaces are a lesson in harmony, strength-drama. We often look at Color FLATLY. By this I mean-as a solid sheet, a paint chip that means little- with nothing effecting It. As we know-Color takes its cues from a beam of sunshine, a cloud, a shadow, the dimming of the day. All day the Colors of a room change & with time Color mellows and these are the perfected Colors we see in Baig and Sigh's Mighty Maharajas.

All of these Colors are best when mellowed with age. Consider when painting walls the Color of your hearts desire-(read-don't paint-and paint again-and again).
Yes, Color is easy to achieve-as most magazines say-an easy Fix, but when you are sure-DO hire a skilled painter to nuance the color. See any of the Joginder Singh photographs to understand what is meant by nuance-the Color speaks for itself.

Extracting colors from the book, I turned to Farrow & Ball. Their Collection is easily matched with the colors of the Maharajas.

Mighty Maharaja Color-Past, Present & Future. Sultans, Pucci,Poynter and Farrow & Ball.

for another look at Vendome Press, flip through some of the pages & get the book here

images from this post used with permission of Vendome Press, all photographs from Mighty Maharajas by Joginder Singh.

a List of Images all by Singh
Detail of a carved stone window in the Diwan-e-Aam
2 & 3,book page & Cover
Bhim Vilas
Carving on the walls of the Abileshwari Temple complex
Detail of a carved stone window in the Diwan-e-Aam
Pillared hallway leading to Amba Vilas
The Verandah of the palace Ramnagar overlooks a temple and the Ganga
Interior of the Chitra Shala at Taragarb Fort
book page

 Farrow & Ball paints- 
l to r,  top row. Mizzle, Arsenic, Porphyry Pink
middle row. Blue Ground, Terre de Egypt, Lulworth Blue
bottom row: Stony Ground, Ointment Pink, Vert de Terre


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