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Silk Paintings

Friday, May 22nd, 2009 | Author:

Silk paintings are another form of popular Indian art. Even though it is a traditional form of art, we still see it being practiced in contemporary times.

 

The fabric of silk is used as the canvas for creating art in Silk Paintings. Silk painting can be traced back to the 2nd century AD and it gradually gained popularity in the 17th – 19th centuries. Craftsmen and women helped to grasp the paint in vivacious detail on the silk canvas through a special process.

 

Silk painting can be created on a whole host of silk products or fabrics. Silk painting, is vastly done on scarves, sarongs, bandanas, clothes, etc. Recently, silk painting has gained popularity on portraits, wall hangings, draperies, curtains, sheets and home decor furnishings.

 

Silk paintings can be performed on a multiplicity of silk fabrics like silk gauze, silk chiffon, silk organza, silk twill, silk velvet, raw silk and many more.

Furthermore, unlike normal painting techniques, silk painting requires special purpose dyes and paints. The major attribute that distinguishes dyes and paints is that, the dyes molecularly link to the fabric and become a vital part of it; whereas paints do not get attached to the cloth.

 

Artists create a variety of designs on the silk canvas like animals, birds, floral designs, decorative patterns, mythological figures, sceneries and culture paintings. The outcome depends upon the quality of the silk used and the type of painting procedure used in specific paintings. Consequently, they vary from cultural and course to elaborate and polished.

 

Royal court life and religious themes are often portrayed as a feature of silk paintings. Attractive women are often a part of these works of art along with effervescent gemstone colouring. Another distinctive characteristic of these paintings is the heavy use of gold leaf.

 

Silk paintings have an eternal appeal and their sophistication, style and magnificence gives them a exalted recognition.

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Phad Paintings…

Wednesday, May 20th, 2009 | Author:

Phad paintings are stunning examples of the Indian cloth paintings that have been originated in the noble state of Rajasthan. The portrayal of the Phad paintings in its totality and the colour format thereof preserves an unusual appearance of the painting gratifying to eyes. This is further augmented and enhanced by artist’s style united with the graceful beauty and elegance of its movement, tempo and power.

 

In the earlier times, the Phad paintings illustrated the life incidents of the Rajasthani heroes like Prithviraj Chauhan, Tejaji, Goga Chauhan, Amar Singh Rathod and various gods and goddesses like Pabuji, Dev Narayan, Rama and Krishna.

 

Phad paintings are known for their lively and charming colours and features. This form of art makes use of natural earthen colours and specifically of vegetable colours mixed with gum, water and indigo. These paintings are splendid and remarkable. Colours in these paintings are very specific – orange for limbs and torso, yellow for jewellery, attire and designs, gray for structure, blue for water and curtains, green for trees and plant life and red significantly for the dress. The outlines of the paintings are first drawn in block and later filled with colors and thick black strokes.

 

Phad painting is a kind of scroll painting. Before the painting is initiated, offerings are made to Goddess Saraswati. A rough sketch is then drafted out on a khadi material and the portraits are perfected. The empty spaces are filled in with flowers and plants. In the “kachcha” base, all the portraits are painted in the colour yellow. The ritual of the youngest girl making the first stroke is followed. The ceremony is ended by celebrations.

 

The distinctive magnificence and themes of Phad paintings have made them the most wanted and appreciated paintings in the world of art and culture.

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Wood Carvings in India…

Thursday, May 14th, 2009 | Author:

One of the most traditional forms of Indian art is wood carving. Carving is referred to shaping wood to create multifarious and intricate designs with precision to the minutest detail.

 

In India, we have come across the most luxurious and complex wood carving. The ancient temple doors, walls, ceilings and beams are a testimony of the fineness in wood carving and the artistic excellence in India. The temple of goddess Kamakhya is an example of this.

 

In Orissa, wooden carved toys, idols of deities, and wooden doors and panels are renowned for their carvings. In Uttar Pradesh, Saharanpur is the hub of wood carving. The wooden screens, tables, trays, bowls, stands, jewellery and boxes are convolutedly enhanced with traditional geometric, basil, fretted pattern and the illustrious leaf patterns. Besides, Rajasthan is also distinguished for its engraved sandalwood, rosewood and heavy ornamental furniture.

 

Wood used for carving is categorized into soft and hard wood. Hardwood is usually acquired from trees like teak, oak, walnut, sandalwood, etc. whereas softwood is obtained from pine, fir and cedar trees. For finest results, carvers use softwood for their artistry.

Carving knives, chisels, scrapers, rasps and files, rotary tools and parting tools are the basic tools used for wood carving.

 

After carving the wood it is important to varnish it. Varnishing on wood makes the products colourful and sparkling, and also smoothens out the curves. This grants a lustrous finesse to the work of art. In India ornamental lacquering is well known. It includes complicated patterns like crisscross and Dana work, atishi, cloud and nakkashi. Varanasi is known for lacquered toys and miniature kitchen utensils for children to play with.

 

Wood carving is one of the most momentous arts in India. It is the emblem that unites art, architecture, culture and religion.

 

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Glass Paintings

Tuesday, May 12th, 2009 | Author:

India is a land of art, craft, culture, tradition and religion. It has wide range of artistic forms. However, the artistic foundation in India is as old as 2000 years or more. A person can find the artistic traditions of India hidden in its diversified cultures, regions, traditions and religions of ancient times. The history of the Indian art depicts stories of the times even before the papers and brushes came into existence. In olden days, the art was practiced in India on the leaves of the palm tree where varied illustrations and textures were created.

 

Gradually came the evolution of Glass painting. It all started around 18th and 19th century when the western world, Europe had already mastered in the field of glass painting. One of the Chinese artist learned this art form Europe and this helped China to export quality paintings to Europe. During that time, India was sharing very strong trade relationship with China, which helped in getting this unique and extraordinary form of art to India.

 

Initially the local artists who were involved in painting the famous stories and epics on the glass mainly used glass painting. One of the most common forms of the glass paintings is that of Lord Ganesha painting. Glass painting requires special kind of glass, which was especially imported from countries like Britain and Belgium.

 

Glass painting was majorly based on either the European themes or the Traditional themes. These mainly included either the pictures of God or epics like Ramayana or European portraits, which ultimately created a big market and were very high on demand.  Some Northern and Southern regions of India are still very popular for Glass painting practice.  

 

Times will go and come but this unique form of art will still be there to tell the stories of our ancestral past.

 

 

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Mughal Art

Monday, May 11th, 2009 | Author:

Mughal art was developed mainly during the 16th – 18th century, in the reigns of the emperors Akbar, Jahangir and Shah Jahan. These paintings included episodes, portraits, panoramas of wild life and battlegrounds. They also portrayed events from the epics of Ramayana and Mahabharata.

 Mughal painting

Mughal paintings were a unique merge of Indian, Islamic and Persian paintings. These paintings are generally restrained to miniatures like book graphics or as single works to be reserved in albums. A classic depiction of the royal life can be observed in the hunting scenes in these Mughal paintings.

 

During the reign of Emperor Jahangir, the artistic scenario was at its best. The paintings created during his reign exemplified events and happenings of his life. Use of light colours and complex brush strokes were the prominent attributes of these paintings such as the ones which were a part of the Jahangirnama, a biographical portrayal of Jahangir.

 

The impressive albums comprising the Mughal paintings were often covered with leather. This leather was smoothened first and then it was embossed and painted. In the preliminary phases the technique of Mughal art often involved a team of people who specialized in art. One determined the composition, the second did the concrete colouring and the third worked on individual faces or portraits. One of the earliest example of the Mughal art is illustrated in the folk tale Tuti – Nameh (tale of a parrot).

 

In recent times, the consummate skill of the Mughal paintings has come to be widely appreciated in the West. Mughal painting was basically a court art which developed under the benefaction of the ruling Mughal emperors and began to deteriorate when the rulers lost interest.

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