FOLK PAINTINGS

Folk paintings are expressions of village life in India. They often depict themes from epics like the Ramayana and Mahabharata, as well as scenes from daily village life, including animals, birds, and natural objects like the sun, moon, and trees.

Madhubani Paintings/Mithila Paintings (Bihar)

• Origin: These paintings are believed to have originated during the Ramayana period, when the King of Mithila instructed his people to decorate the walls and floors of their homes in celebration of the marriage of Sita and Rama.
• Themes:
  • Religious Motifs: Depictions of Hindu deities, including Krishna, Rama, Durga, Lakshmi, and Shiva.
  • Auspicious Occasions: The paintings also capture significant events like births, marriages, and festivals.
• Features:
  • Two-Dimensional: The artwork lacks shading, resulting in flat, two-dimensional figures.
  • Symbolism: The figures in Madhubani paintings are often symbolic. For example, fish represent good luck and fertility.
  • Traditional Materials: Originally painted on walls using rice paste and vegetable colors on a base of cow dung and mud. Over time, the medium transitioned to handmade paper, clothes, and canvas.
• GI Status: Madhubani paintings have been granted Geographical Indication (GI) status due to their association with a specific region, ensuring that only paintings from this area can be labeled as such.
• Subjects:
  • Hindu deities like Krishna, Rama, Lakshmi, and Saraswati.
  • Court scenes, wedding ceremonies, and celestial bodies like the sun and moon.
• Purpose: The paintings reflect the feelings, hopes, and aspirations of women.
• Other Features:
  • Double-line border.
  • Bold use of colors, ornate floral patterns, and exaggerated facial features.

Pattachitra Painting (Odisha and West Bengal)

• Theme:

• Primarily inspired by the Jagannath and Vaishnava cults, with occasional influences from the Shakti and Shaiva traditions.
• Thia Badhia: Depicts the temple of Jagannath.
• Krishna Lila: Shows Lord Krishna’s childhood, often depicted as Jagannath.
• Dasabatara Patti: Illustrates the ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu.
• Panchamukhi: Represents Lord Ganesh as a five-headed deity.

• Features:

• Base: Traditionally painted on treated cloth, with natural colors sourced from vegetable extracts, minerals, stones, burnt coconut shells, and other materials like ramaraja and lamp black.
• Colours: Vegetable and mineral-based pigments, mixed with glue for binding.
• Similarity with Old Murals: They depict scenes similar to ancient murals found in Puri and Konark.
• Disciplined Art: Pattachitra adheres to strict rules, and each painting is done within these restrictions.
• Style: A blend of folk and classical elements, often influenced by Mughal dress styles.
• Talapattachitra: A unique form of Pattachitra painted on palm leaves.

Pata Art (West Bengal)

• Origin: Patua art is about 1,000 years old and began as a village tradition, where painters (called Patuas) narrated Mangalkavyas (religious and auspicious stories of Hindu gods and goddesses).
• Theme:
  • Traditionally focused on religious stories.
  • Modern themes include political and social issues.
• Medium:
  • Originally painted on cloth; today, often created using poster paints on sheets of paper sewn together.
• Formats:
  • Vertical scroll (dighal pat).
  • Horizontal scroll (jorano pat).
  • Quadrangular sheet (chauka pat).

Kalighat Painting (West Bengal)

• Origin: Developed in the 19th century, around the Kalighat Kali Temple in Calcutta (Kolkata).
• Themes:

• Religious: Depictions of Hindu deities like Krishna-Radha, Kartikeya, Durga, Lakshmi, Sarasvati, and Ganesha.
• Secular: Painted historical figures like Rani Lakshmibai and Duldul, the horse of Imam Hussain of Karbala, contributing to the Independence movement.

• Features:

• Exaggerated Roundness: Faces and limbs are often rounded, with curves and isolated images or small groups.
• Technique: Watercolors and brushwork, created with a dab technique.
• 3D Effect: Shading and outlining contours give the illusion of volume, without full three-dimensionality.
• Common Features: Figures are often frontal, with direct gazes and a lack of background.
• Western Influence: Depictions of Hindu gods sometimes include Western elements, like figures wearing shoes.

Kalamkari Painting (Andhra Pradesh)

• Technique: This art involves decorating handloom fabric with natural dyes, applied using a twig shaped like a pen.
• Themes:
  • Srikalahasti: Focuses on Hindu mythology, especially Ramayana, Mahabharata, and depictions of gods and heroes.
  • Masulipatnam: Influenced by Persian motifs due to Muslim rule in Golconda, featuring designs suited to trade demands.
• Styles: Two major styles are:
  • Srikalahasti Style
  • Machilipatnam Style
• Technique:
  • Kalamkari paintings are created by applying dyes extracted from natural sources like roots, leaves, flowers, and fruits.
  • Srikalahasti: The cloth is directly painted using a pen made from bamboo sticks wrapped with felt.
  • Masulipatnam: The intricate designs are carved onto wooden blocks, which are used to transfer the designs onto the cloth.

Warli Painting (Maharashtra)

• Purpose: Warli paintings are made on the walls of homes during marriage rituals or after the harvest season.
• Theme: Focuses on the social lifestyle and activities of the Warli people, including hunting, fishing, farming, and village life.
• Features: Narrative: The paintings are narrative in style, with gestures and movement, often showing characters interacting.
  • Technique:
    • The human figures are simplistic, drawn with geometrical shapes such as triangles and stick-like hands and legs.
    • Chaukat: The most striking feature, a square with intricate geometrical shapes (circles, triangles, etc.), drawn around the Palaghat goddess.

Saura Paintings (Odisha)

• Idital: A Saora painting is called Idital, and the painter is known as Iditalma. These paintings are done to appease the deity, Edital, who is invoked during rituals and celebrations.
• Technique: Painting an icon is considered an act of ritual divination. The painter, guided by a shaman, may be spiritually possessed during the process, believed to connect with the spirit to complete the work.
• Colours: Mostly white is used, with the backdrop of red or yellow. Natural colors are extracted from minerals and plants.
• Similar to Warli Paintings: Saura paintings are similar to Warli paintings in terms of style and narrative.

Pithora Painting

• Region: Created by the Bhil tribe of Madhya Pradesh and Rathwas of Gujarat.
• Purpose: The paintings honor Baba Pithora, the god of the village, especially during the spring season.
• Images: The wall surfaces serve as canvases for painting sacred Pithoras, often depicting horses and riders. Each horse and rider is associated with a Bhil deity.

Significance of Folk Paintings

• Aspiration of Individual: Folk paintings became a medium to represent the aspirations of individuals in a local region.
  • Example: Madhubani Paintings: Practiced by women to express their spirituality and connection with God.
• The Ideal Subject: These paintings often depict the idealized human form as desired in a particular culture.
  • Example: Rajasthani Miniature Paintings: Human figures with large eyes, slim waists, and pointed noses are considered ideal features.
• Telling Stories: Folk paintings serve as a medium to narrate stories of deities and create traditions around them.
  • Example: Phad Paintings from Rajasthan narrate the stories of Pabuji on scrolls.
• Depicting Daily Lives: These paintings reflect the daily activities of the local people.
  • Example: Warli Paintings of Maharashtra depict everyday activities like fishing, hunting, and festivals through circles and triangles.
• Belief System: Folk paintings often use mythological stories to propagate the local belief system.
  • Example: Cheriyal Scrolls of Telangana depict Puranas and epics on scrolls used by wandering saints for storytelling.
• Relationships in Society: These paintings highlight various relationships within society, such as between zamindars (landlords) and locals, or between priests and women.
  • Example: Kalighat Paintings of Bengal depict priests with unchaste women and zamindars drinking wine with women, reflecting complex social dynamics.