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| Radha, Krishna and sakhis playing Holi. Lucknow, Avadh (Oudh), 19th century. Opaque watercolour and gold on paper |
If you have not heard much about the art of painting practised by the ancient, medieval and subsequent Indian artists, you are not in minority.
Most
of the budding artists and art lovers believe that the art of painting is what
the European artists have painted since the renaissance. And under the glow of
these master artists, the art of those who lived on the other pieces of Earth
have been ignored.
But the modern art-lovers have found interest in the forgotten regions,
too. Indian Painting and the various schools of painting that flourished in India is one of these new-found attractions of the art-lovers. The most charming
aspect of Indian art is miniature painting.
Miniature Paintings style had flourished in India. It was essentially an art
revolving around the courts of rulers, getting sponsorship especially from the
Mughal Emperors and the Rajput Kings. Miniature art carried with it the artistic influence of past cultures, too. Materials were no problem. Artists acquired everything locally.
The schools of Miniature Paintings operating in India can be indexed as below.
The miniature artists depicted their art on paper, ivory articles, wooden furniture, leather and marble. Surfaces, no bar. They used even hand-made cloth and walls as their canvases, conveying reality beyond a specific vantage point, employing multiple perspectives.
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| The emperor Jahangir celebrating the Festival of Holi with the ladies of the zenana Miniature, opaque, gold watercolour, National Gallery of Australia Canberra |
Mughal Miniature: Mughal Miniature art is a pioneer in India,
so far as the art of miniature painting is concerned. The Mughal Emperors,
despite they were followers of Islam, had kept the art of painting secular.
Look at this miniature. In this painting, Emperor Jahangir is shown as
participating in a Hindu religious festival of Holi. He is shown as enjoying the whole of his family and friends.
The Mughal Emperors were patrons of art. When
they reduced their assistance to the painting art, the artists moved to the
other regions of India. This resulted in a different style of schools of painting,
including the miniature form of art. Here are some important schools of
paintings that flourished in India from the period of the sixteenth to the
nineteenth century. These paintings depict the history of Indian culture and
people's lifestyle during the medieval period.
The Mughal Art in
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| Philadelphia Museum of Art Painting 1750 Opaque watercolour and gold on cotton Philadelphia Museum of Art |
RAJASTHAN PAINTINGS: The various kings and princes of Rajputana were known for
their love for music and paintings. They sponsored the miniature style of
paintings. Initially, this style of painting came from Persia. The Mughal
Emperors helped it to grow. But once the rule of the Mughal empire weakened,
they had stopped assisting the artists.
In the northern part of India, a new sect (Sampradaya) of the Hindu
religion had become more popular. It is called Vaishnavism. With the spread
of Vaishnavism, in the early Eighteenth Century, the Gita Govinda came to be regarded
as a popular pictorial theme in various art centres. These centres were the regions of Rajasthan and Gujarat.
During this period, the Poems of Gita Govinda were extensively illustrated in the Rajasthani school of painting and Pahari Painting. Other illustrators also
followed this style.
The patrons of the local artists were the
Rajput kings and prices. So the style of the paintings was named Rajaputana
painting or Rajasthan painting. The Hindu
Rajput kings encouraged the artists to depict Scenes of the Epics of the Hindu
religion. Ramayan and Mahabharat were the main epics. However, the paintings depicting Lord Krishna were getting more attention from the artists.
The union of Lord Krishna and his divine
lover Radha were worshipped as deities. So these divine pair became the main
subjects for the artists. The Radha is believed to be the Earthly realm. Lord
Krishna is the divine element. Though Radha was a shepherd woman, in miniature
paintings, she is painted as wearing decorative robes and precious jewellery.
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| A Lady Luring a Bird Kangra Painting Colour and Gold on Paper Rijksmuseum |
Kangra painting: This
school of painting is pictorial art of the people living in the region of
Himachal Pradesh, situated in the northern part of India. There are several
subregions of the area which have developed their particular styles of painting.
Collectively these paintings are known as the Pahari (mountain) style of
Paintings.
This area of the northern part of the Himalayan mountain range is
well-known for its beauty in the Himalayan mountains. With the help of
erstwhile princely states, the painting style of Kangra flourished in the years
of the mid-eighteenth century. This style of painting was patronised by the
Rajput rulers of the seventeenth and eighteenth century.
In this painting, a lady, standing on a terrace, is holding a cup in her
hand. She tries to lure the bird and cage it. The colours used are red,
orange, yellow. Black stripes are also visible.
PHAD PAINTING:
Phad painting is a popular style of folk painting. The painting under
this style is done on a piece of cloth. This is one of the painting styles
practised in northern
Ragamala Painting: In the Ragamala series of paintings,
it remains a humble endeavour to explore the beauty of the ragas and how these
melodious beauties are embedded in the colours of those paintings which are
based on each raga. The subject of Lord Krishna and Radha, his lover was favourite amongst the
Ragamala painters. The artists of medieval
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| Bahsoli painting of Maharaja Sital Dev of Mankot in Devotion, Ink, opaque watercolour, and silver on paper.Unknown author |
Basohli Painting: Basohli or Basholi style of Painting is also from the Himalayan range of mountains. Pahari Paintings, Kangra. Painting Mythology: these are the elements this style of the painting depicts. In this style of painting the faces of the characters are specially painted, in a typical style. The subjects always remain the Deities and Lord Krishna. itis also believed that unlike other styles of miniature paintings, the Basholi paintings were done before the Mughal rule started in India. In addition to the religious subjects, these artists painted the events and life of their patron kings. This style was in a way unconventional. The colours the used were primary, but they used bolder colours to emphasise their objects and subjects.
Deccan Miniature: This school of painting that had flourished in the southern region of India was tagged as the Deccan School of Miniature painting. These artists generally lived in the cities of Ahmadnagar, Bijapur, Golconda, and Aurangabad. On seeing their work we can arrive at a conclusion that these painters were influenced by the style of the painters of Persian and Turkish style. However, they had tried to synthesize foreign styles with indigenous traditions. That had resulted in a charming tradition. We can see that the themes look like trademarks of the Deccan School of paintings.
Tanjore painting: Thanjavur or Tanjore paintings are art that is as old as the fifteenth and seventeenth century. It was the art of the people of south India living around the City of Thanjavur, a city in the Southern part of India. The language Tamil, spoken mainly in the present-day Tamilnadu state of India, and the art of Tamil culture occupy a major chunk of detail in the history of the civilization of India. Likewise, in Eastern India, the school of Kalighat Painting is also popular among ordinary people and art lovers. [All the images are in Public Domain, taken from Wikimedia Commons]
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