Gitanjali: Offerings of Song and Art

Poet, playwright, and novelist Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) was one of the towering cultural figures of modern India, winning the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913. Of his many works, the most enduringly popular has been Gitanjali, or Song Offerings, likely due to the honesty with which these verses articulate the poet’s personal, and humanity’s eternal, spiritual quest. Although steeped in Hindu roots, they have the capability of bringing together compassionate, seeking minds of all faiths. Certainly they are worth reading and rereading in these times of troubling religious strife. Inspired by his first reading of Gitanjali, artist Mark W. McGinnis created 103 exquisite nine-by-nine-inch paintings, after the fashion of Indian Kangra style paintings of the late 18th century. His paintings are intended not simply to be illustrations of Tagore’s verses but images inspired by them and the artist’s understanding of the creative mind behind them.