Painting in India

India had an exquisite tradition in the art of painting in the ancient age, and most of the early period paintings were based on religious themes and showed episodes from the Hindu epics or Jain and Buddhist literature. Though very few early examples survive because of the climatic conditions, they are insignificant to understanding the history of ancient India.

Evolution of painting in India:

We basically find two main types of Paintings in India – Murals and Miniatures. Apart from these several local types can also be found.

In India paintings have largely emerged in following phases:

Mural Painting

A mural is any graphic artwork painted directly on a wall or other permanent substrate. It includes fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. In fact, the cave paintings too can be classified as the Mural painting.

Prehistoric Paintings:

Prehistoric paintings were generally executed on rocks and also called as Petrogylps. Bhimbetka in Madhya Pradesh has the first evidence of Petrogylps. There are 3 major phases of prehistoric paintings:

Upper Paleolithic Period:

The Upper Paleolithic age starts from the evolution of speech and art. From this point on, the tools became finer and the humans started expressing themselves through cave paintings:

1. The paintings of this age have linear representations
2. The paintings are generally in green and dark red. The dancers are represented in Green colours, and the hunters are in red colour.
3. Huge animal figures like bison, elephants, tigers, rhinos and boars, besides stick-like human figures, are mainly depicted in paintings.
4. Mostly, they are filled with geometric patterns.
5. The 2 most prominent sites of excellent prehistoric paintings in India are Bhimbetka (Madhya Pradesh) and Jogimara caves (Chhattisgarh).

Mesolithic period:

The speech further developed and humans were able to invent spoken language in these times. This enabled even better communication, leading to an evolution in the lifestyle. This enabled humans to create even finer tools and better art. The largest number of prehistoric paintings belongs to this age. The themes were diverse, but the paintings were smaller in size.

• Community dances provide a common theme.
• Hunting scenes were the most common in these paintings. The hunting scenes depict a group of people hunting armed with barbed spears, pointed sticks, bows and arrows. Grazing activity and riding scenes were also very common.
• In some pictures, animals are chasing men and vice versa.

Characteristics of Figures in this age:

• Though the animals were painted in a naturalistic style, humans were depicted only in a stylistic manner.
• Women are painted both in the well-dressed and nude.
• The young and the old (sort of family) equally find a place in these paintings.
• Children are painted running, jumping and playing.

Cave Painting at the dawn of Civilisation:

With the invention of metal tools during Chalcolithic age, the paintings too saw an evolution:

• This age saw an increase in the number of paintings using green and yellow colours.
• Pottery and metal tools are prominent features in this painting.
• The paintings of this period reveal the association and mutual exchange of various requirements of the cave dwellers with settled agricultural communities of the Malwa Plateau.

  

Similarities with rock paintings: Many a time, Chalcolithic ceramics and rock paintings bear common motifs, e.g., crosshatched squares lattices.

Difference with rock paintings: the Vividness and vitality of earlier periods disappeared from these paintings.

Jogimara Caves in Chhattisgarh and Gudahandi Rock Shelter in Odisha houses some of the paintings from this period.

Jogimara Cave Paintings (Chattisgarh):

• These are pre-Buddha caves, dated around 1000-300 BC.
• The use of the Brahmi script was prominent.
• Themes like dancing couples, animals like elephants and fish, etc, are very common.
• White base plaster, red outline with colours like yellow, black, etc, unique features of Jogimara Cave Paintings.
• The rock cut theatre of Sitabenga is also located nearby.

Classical Murals of India

Mural paintings started in India date from the 2^nd Century BC. Its earliest examples can be found in Ajanta, Bagh, Amaravati, and Ellora caves, etc. Most of the themes in these paintings are related to Buddhism, Jainism and Hinduism.

• Most of the colours were locally available.
• Brushes were made up from the animal hairs of camel, goats, mongoose, etc.

Method of Painting:

The paintings were drawn in watercolours on the ground coated with a thin layer of lime plaster. Two methods were used to paint on this surface:

1. True fresco method: the paintings are done on the wet surface wall so that the pigments go deep inside the wall surface.
2. Tempora Method: It is a method of painting on a lime-plastered surface, which is allowed to dry first and then drenched with fresh lime water.

The principal colours in use were red ochre, vermilion (sindur), yellow ochre, indigo blue, lapis lazuli, lamp black, chalk white, terraverte and green.

These techniques of making Indian wall paintings has been discussed in the Vishnudharamotaram.

Ajanta Cave Paintings (Maharashtra):

It is one of the oldest surviving murals of the 2nd century BC to the 6th century CE are found in the Ajanta Caves which belong to the Maurya, Gupta and Shunga periods.

• In both the murals and fresco, the painting techniques were used. The use of tempera style (use of pigments) is also prevalent.
• The paintings depict human values and social fabric, as well as clothes and accessories.
• Major themes are related to Buddhism, like Jataka stories, the life of Buddha, etc.
• The outline of the figures is in red ochre
• Each female figure has a unique hairstyle, several skin colours.

Some of the Important Paintings are:

1. Padmapani (Avalokitesvara) and Vajrapani
2. Manjusri
3. Scenes from the Jataka stories.
4. Dying Princess in Cave No. 16.
5. Apsara in Cave No. 17.

Bagh Cave Paintings

The Paintings of Bagh Cave is an Extension to the Ajanta school (caves no 1 and 2) in Madhya Pradesh, mainly executed in tempera style. These are very much Similar in terms of design, execution and decoration to Ajanta.

• They are more earthly and human than those at Ajanta.
• The paintings are more secular in nature. These paintings are materialistic rather than spiritualistic.
• The major difference is figures are more tightly modelled, have stronger outlines, etc.
• These paintings have dark contours against a light red background.
• Cave No. 4- Rang Mahal.

Ellora Cave Paintings (Maharashtra):

A number of Buddhist, Hindu and Jain temples were excavated around the 8^th– 10^th centuries CE. All caves had paintings but currently they survive in only 5 caves.

• Fragments of paintings are also found on the ceiling of the different parts of the Kailashnath temple.
• Rectangular panels with thick borders are a significant feature of these Caves.
• A sharp twist of the head, painted angular bends of the arms, the concave curve of the close limbs, the sharp projected nose and the long drawn open eyes, etc., are the main features of this painting.
• Indra Sabha (Cave no. 32) and Jagannath Sabha (Cave no. 33). are two well-known Jain caves in

Murals were done in two phases:

1. During the carving of the caves and
2. a few centuries later.

Sittanavasal Cave Paintings (Tamil Nadu):

The paintings of Sittannavasal are intimately connected with Jain themes but enjoy the same norm and technique as that of Ajanta. 1st century BC to 10th century AD.

• Technique: The fresco is used as a painting technique.
• The contours of these paintings are firmly drawn dark on a light red ground.
• Paintings are on walls, pillars and ceilings. The ceiling of the Verandah is painted.
• The paintings are based on the Jain Samavasarana
• Themes like a lotus pool with birds, elephants, buffaloes and a young man plucking flowers, etc., are insignificant.

Badami Cave Temple (Karnataka)

These are one of the earliest surviving Hindu paintings (6th-7th century) of the Chalukya Age. The Chalukyan king, Mangalesha (son of Pulakeshin I), patronised the excavation of Badami caves. Features of these images:

• Famous for graceful and compassionate looks.
• Though the technique follows that of Ajanta and Bagh, the modelling is much more sensitive in texture and expression, and the outline is soft and elastic.
• The most significant drawing is in Cave No. 3, four-armed Brahma on his swan.
• The mural in cave no. 4, dedicated to Adinatha Thirthankara, depicts Jain saints relinquishing the world for the attainment of knowledge.

Ravan Chhaya Rock Shelter (Odisha):

• Rock shelters are in the shape of half-opened umbrellas.
• The most significant painting is of a royal procession (7th century AD).
• The use of the tempera technique is observed.

Armamalai Cave Paintings (Pandyas, Tamil Nadu):

• These are Natural caves, later converted to Jain temples during the 8th century.
• Stories of the Jain religion and tales of Astadik-Palakas (deities protecting eight corners) through stunning paintings.
• Assimilation of both the Northern and Southern Technique.

Vijayanagara Murals:

The paintings at Tiruparakunram (Trichy), done around the 14th century, represented the early phase of the Vijayanagara style.

• In most of the paintings, human faces appear in a profile, and the figures stand with a little slant with both feet pointing in the same direction.
• Paintings are mainly on the mandapa’s ceilings and in the temple.
• The main theme of Vijayanagar paintings is scenes related to Draupadi’s wedding and Kiratarjunya.

After the fall of the Vijaynagar Empire, Vijaynagara Mural painters migrated to cities like Thanjavur and Mysuru in the 16^th century and originated Miniature paintings in cities like Tanjore and Mysore.

Nayaka Murals Paintings:

It is the extension of the Vijayanagara style of Murals paintings.

The most prominent theme of Nayaka Paintings is the story of legendary Chola King Mucukunds.

Tanjore paintings

Thanjavur paintings (or Tanjore Paintings) originated from the temple mural paintings in the 11^th century in the temple town. Later, the Mural artists started painting similar themes in the miniature form.

• Characteristic feature: In its miniature form, the artists started using precious stones, cut gasses and gold foils with brilliant colour combinations.

  

• Themes: Initially used to depict Hindu Gods and Goddesses in grandeur. Most of the paintings would depict the Krishna (child avatar) and his various pranks; paintings of other deities were also created. Presiding deities of various famous temples are also depicted in the paintings.
• Features: Figures are large, and the faces are round and divine. Lace or thread is also used to decorate the Jewellery.
• Background: Mostly created on glass and wooden planks. A mixture called “muk” is prepared using chalk powder and African gum in a ratio of 2:1 and applied in places around the stones and other areas to give an embossed look.
• Later Patrons: Marathas, Nayakas, Rajus of Tanjore and Trichy and Naidus of Madurai also patronised this painting form.

An evolution like no longer use of round figures was prominent with the changing times.

Mysore Paintings

• Theme: Depiction of Hindu gods and goddesses is most common.
• Style: One figure predominates all the others.
• Background: Using the ‘gesso paste’ is significant. ‘gesso paste’ is a combination of zinc oxide and Arabic gum, which develops a lustre in the background.

Recently, both Tanjore and Mysore paintings got the GI tag.

Lepakshi Temple Paintings (Andhra Pradesh):

These Paintings became prominent in Veerabhadra temple walls at Lepakshi in the 16th century, during the reign of King Achutaraya of the Vijayanagara empire.

• Themes like Ramayana, Mahabharata and incarnations of Vishnu are so much visible in lepakshi. Figures are generally outlined in black colour.
• The complete absence of primary colours depicts a decline in quality.

Kerala Murals Paintings:

• These paintings are inspired by Kathakali and Kalam Ezhuthu.

  

• The theme of this painting is mostly based on Hindu mythology.
• The most significant examples of Kerala mural paintings are the Vadakkunnathan temple, Padmanabhapuram palace, etc.

 

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