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Painting as an art form has flourished in India from very early periods as
is evident from literary sources and also from the remnants that have been
discovered. Numerous paintings or Patas are mentioned in the
Mudrakshaka. There are isolated paintings like the
Yama-pata;
isolated framed drawings like Cauka-patas
and the Dighala-patas
or long scroll of paintings, representing a complete legend. In another book
Vishnudharmottara, the section
Chitrasutra describes the basic
tenets of painting. According to this treatise, the six limbs of painting
are: variety of form, proportion, infusion of emotions, creation of luster
and iridescence, portrayal of likeness and colour mixing to produce the
effect of modeling. The Vinayapitaka (3-4 century BC) describes the
existence of painted figures in many royal buildings.
Paintings
and drawings of animals dating back to prehistoric times have been found in
the Bhimbetka caves in Madhya Pradesh. The Mesolithic paintings of
Narsingarh ( M.P.) show skins of spotted deer left drying which indicate
that man has acquired the art of tanning skins for clothing and shelter. In
the paintings of these period musical instruments like the harp figure to
show that the awareness of creation of sound and the concept of rhythm had
appeared. The paintings of the Mesolithic period contain geometric forms
like the spiral, square, circle and rhomboid. A painting from Joanna (M.P.)
shows a square divided by vertical lines into compartments.
Thousands of years later, paintings appear on the seals of the
Harappan Civilization. In the early historic rock paintings the animals are
depicted as half human and half animal. In the paintings of the later
period, men are depicted as riding on cattle and elephants. Battle scenes,
royal processions, men riding garrisoned horses predominate the rock canvas
as in Mahadeo Hills, M.P. The Ajanta and Ellora caves and the Bagh caves are
excellenct specimens of paintings of the early Christian era.
The Guptas were the great patrons of art and the period 4-6 centuries
is often described as the Golden Age of Indian Arts. The Pallavas also left
behind excellent examples of paintings in temples. The Cholas promoted both
painting and sculpture. The Palas, who ruled the eastern India during 9-16th
Centuries A.D. gave immense encouragement to painting. The earliest
paintings of this period are on palm leafs and wooden covers of manuscripts.
These can be described as the earliest examples of
Miniature painting in India.
PRE-HISTORIC
BHIMBETKA PAINTINGS
The
pre-historic Bhimbetka paintings were executed on quartzite walls of the
rock shelters using minerals for pigments, the most common being ochre or
geru mixed with lime or water or other medium. The earliest paintings
are of Mesolithic times followed by the Chalcolithic and the historic
periods. These paintings, done with the help of thin brushes probably made
of twigs, show a myriad of animals and human figures, intricate designs,
riders, royal procession, hunting and battle scenes. Majority of paintings
are in various shades of red and white apart from some paintings in green
and yellow colours. In Mesolithic paintings wild animals and human figures
are more common. The animals are shown standing, moving, running, grazing or
being hunted singly or collectively. The paintings of the historic period
overlap the earlier paintings and depict royal processions, battle scenes
and men riding garrisoned horses. Conveying dynamism and movement, these
paintings specially of animals, are extremely natural in their depiction.
The site was also inhabited during the late historical times as is evident
from paintings and writings in
CLASSIFICATION OF INDIAN PAINTINGS
Indian
Paintings can be broadly classified as the murals and miniatures. Murals are
huge works executed on the walls of solid structures, as in the
Ajanta Caves and the Kailashnath temple. Miniature paintings are
executed on a very small scale on perishable material such as paper and
cloth. The Palas of Bengal were the pioneers of
miniature painting
in India. The art of miniature painting reached its glory during
the
Mughal period. The tradition of miniature
paintings was carried forward by the painters of different
Rajasthani schools of painting like the
Bundi,
Kishangarh,
Jaipur,
Marwar and
Mewar. The Ragamala paintings also belong to this
school.
Indian paintings provide an
aesthetic continuum that extends from the early civilization to the present
day. From being essentially religious in purpose in the beginning, Indian
painting has evolved over the years to
become a fusion of various cultures and traditions. The Indian
painting was exposed to Greco-Roman as well as Iranian and Chinese
influences.
Cave paintings in different parts of India bear
testimony to these influences and a continuous evolution of new idioms is
evident. |
