Surgery

                                    Krishna
                       Adorning Radha’s
                Breasts. Kangra School
         c. 1780. Krishna sits facing
   Radha, a hillside, trees, flowers
a distant citadel. He holds a slim
  brush tipped with sable, paints                         —x—x—x—x—x—x—
       with slow strokes around
          her nipple. Their legs
                    entwine.

Krishna Adorning Radha’s Breasts, Kangra School, 1780.

I came across this charming and subtly erotic painting whilst researching Indian love poetry. There is something about this tradition of art which celebrates sexuality in a joyful and free way. Mastectomy challenges both partners to preserve this, but a certain innocence is lost and the painting seemed poignant when juxtaposed with the realities being faced in the poem.