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Origin & Development of Indian Painting

The origin of Indian painting goes back to 8000 years and an account of its development is inextricably meshed with the development of Indian civilization. But the culmination of Indian frescoes can be seen at Ajanta, where from the second century B.C., wall painting continued to be made until the fifth century.

There is no definite evidence of painting during the Indus Valley Civilization, but the design and decoration of earthen pots reveal that the art of painting was not entirely unknown. Painting was unknown during the Mauryan period also.

Indian painting reached a high level of achievement in the Gupta period at Ajanta and Bagh where entire settlements of rock-cut caves were decorated with figures of men and women. Some of them, like the famous painting of the Bodhisattva, are graceful and yet pensive, as of pondering the cycle of birth and death.

When the Gupta Empire declined, its style of art underwent several distinct changes, which art historians have classified into three phases. In the 7th to 8th century, which constitutes the first phase, the styles did not change very visibly. Painting activity seems to have shifted at this time from Ajanta caves to the neighbouring caves at Ellora. During the second phase, artists painted scenes from the Hindu epic, the Ramayana. The third phase, which date to the 13th to 16th centuries, creativity in art was replaced by excellence of craftsmanship.

It was during this period that the earliest book illustrations developed. Buddhist scriptures such as the Pranjaparamita preserved on palm leaf manuscripts were now illustrated for the first time with miniatures in flat, bright hues of red and blue outlined in black. The Pala rulers of Eastern India, who came to power in the 9th century, encouraged this form of art, and so did royal patrons in other parts of India

The Muslim ruler of South India followed the Persian tradition of art and painting, which was novel in itself.

After the decline of Mughal painting, a large number of painters took shelter in Patna and developed a novel style or school of painting by combining the Mughal and British style and giving it a local touch. It consists of small painting which is generally made on the paper and elephants teeth. The theme is generally related to the daily life style of the common people. Some of the important painting of this school are; carpenter showing the wood, a fisher-woman selling the fish, Iron-smith, Goldsmith, peasant ploughing the field etc. Radha Mohan was the greatest painter of this school.

Modern Painting: Indian artists today are experimenting with a variety of images and materials in an attempt to express the multiplicity of Indian life. Artists, such as M.F. Hussain and Krishen Khanna employ symbols and techniques from the past and the present to express the universality of the human experience in the forms and images of India.

M F HUSSAIN

S.H. Quazi’s paintings have hallucinogenic optical qualities. R.S. Gill and Jaswant Singh’s paintings bear the traits of surrealism. Picking up Freudian resonances in the sexual suggestions of imagery is the domain of G.R. Santosh.

Geometric abstracts are drawn by Viswanadhan. Satish Gujral is both, a painter and muralist in modern style. The paintings of F.N.De Souza illustrate Goan Christian traditions & culture.

Prominent painter Shobha Singh’s favourite is canvas oil painting. SH Raza pays attention on things that make up the figurative part of painting. He, however, prefers landscapes. Several modern techniques have been developed in order to glorify modern Indian paintings.

There are a few newly admitted dimensions in the field of painting.

Computer Painting: With the help of modern technology and software, the painter, now, uses to make complex design in variegated colours which replaces the traditional methods of designing. It is rather efficient and less time-taking.

Tantra style: K.C.S. Panniker is the founding father of this style; His painting reveals the unique supernatural power and structural presentation of witches or Ghosts. It was started some 30 years ago.

Revivalist Style: This style was developed by E W Hevel along with Abanindra Nath Tagore in 1896. Abanindra Nath Tagore originally followed the Mughal style and later on combined it with the Japanese style which is now known as the Bengal or Revivalist style,

Present here is the list of some of the famous painters of India.

(1) Jamini Roy: He adopted European style and oil painting. In the field of painting, he revived the folk art and tradition by giving it a picturesque description in his painting. He produced masterpieces in murals, miniatures and portraits.

(2) Nand-lal Bose: Mythological stories, historical events and the real life situation are the chief themes of his painting. His painting is known for the use of simple colour and bold line. His masterpieces are ‘Uma’s Tapasya’, ‘Pranam’, ‘Shiva’, ‘Parvati’, ‘Gopini’ and ‘Spring’.

(3) A.K. Haldar: The chief characteristic of his painting is to show the beauty and harmony of poetical composition. His design of painting is very ornamental in nature and painted with extreme precisions. In this way, he introduced novelty in the field of painting.

(4) Abanindra Nath Tagore: He has discovered the traditional Indian art and culture in his painting. His painting elegantly depicts the feeling and emotion of the Indian people or Indian-ness. Thus, the narration of philosophy and Impulse is the main theme of his painting. He is known for his famous picture, “Shah Jahan Looking at the Taj’.

(5) Amrita Shergil: She was the youngest and first Asian, who was elected associate of Grand Salon for her famous painting ‘Conversation’ (1934). Her best painting consists of ‘Siesta’, ‘Hillside’, ‘Elephants’, ‘Bathing in Green Pool’ and “The Nudes’.

(6) Sharda Ukil: Imagination and idealistic conception are the two important components of his painting. He also worked on historical themes against the historical background. In a series of picture, he has depicted the life of the Buddha.

SCHOOLS OF PAINTING IN INDIA: Past & Present

Mughal Paintings: The new style developed in the court of Akbar, who successfully blended Hindu and Islamic elements to create the style that we now call Mughal, in architecture, art and administration. Akbar established workshops or Karkhanas for painters at his court at Fatehpur Sikri, near Agra. Under the guidance of a Persian artist, Mir Sayyid Ali, and a talented calligrapher named Abdus Salam, about a hundred promising young artist were trained in the art of miniature painting and calligraphy.

Mughal miniatures defy traditional Western classification. They are not always on paper. Not all of them are of a standard size. In fact, some of them are far from miniature in size, being as large as English watercolours. And, not all of them were made as illustrations for books. Some are loose individual paintings gathered in albums called Muraqqa. Among these are the Hindu epic, the "Mahabharata", which became known as the "Hamzanama" or the story of the Great War. It was illustrated with about 1400 paintings on coarse cotton cloth. Among other manuscripts written and illustrated under his direction were the baburnama, or the Memoir of Babur, and the akbarnama.

The paintings done in Akbar’s time established new patterns of art. If Akbar established a new idiom in the field of painting, his son Jahangir brought, it to fruitation, for the miniatures produced under his patronage are the best of those in the Mughal style. Jahangir had an interest in fauna and flora that led to a large number of lovely paintings of animals, birds and plants being done.            

Rajput Paintings: It was prevalent in Rajputana, Bundelkhand and Punjab-Himalya region. It is an aristocratic folk art appealing to all classes alike. It illustrates every phase of medieval Hindi literature and its theme cannot be understood without a thorough knowledge of the Indian epics, Krishna Lila literature, music and erotics. One of the oldest Rajput paintings has Krishna Lila and lyrical theme.

‘I’anjore school: This school of painting imbibed the culture and style of various conquering rulers. Tanjore paintings on wood were commissioned by patrons whose wealth decided the quality of art work on gold leaf or gems. The artists were Kshatriyas of the Raje community, for whom art was a ritual expression rather than a creative one.
The common themes for Tanjore paintings are the ones, portraying Krishna or the coronation of Rama, called the Rampattabhishekam. The Navnita Krishna, or Krishna holding a ball of butter, is an often-repeated theme, as is the Darbar Krishna, Radha Krishna or Krishna with Rukmini and Satyabhama. Other 11 popular themes are the Sreeranganatha or sleeping Vishnu, Gajalakshmi and Vishnu with his consort Bhudevi and Sridevi.

Uncommon themes are subjects like Markandaya, Dasavatar, Ashtadipala or the secular company school portraits and Sikh themes using the Tanjore technique. Painting is generally made on wood. Meena Muthaih of Chennai is the chief architect of this school. The chief exponents of the Tanjore Painting were Munmadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar, E.W. Havell, A K. Haldar, Sharda Ukil, Amrita Shergil, Jamini Roy.

Mysore paintings: are on hand made papers and less heavy and ornate than their Tanjore counterparts. The colour schemes are typical, with frequent use of red and green, and no sharp contrast with gold work, if it is used at all. There is a greater emphasis on fine lines and delicate detail, especially on corner scroll designs, clothing and other decorative elements. The figures are not heavy, and have delicate oval faces and regular features. There is also no gem setting and glass embellishment. Most of  the theme of the painting is religious and meant for worship, portraiture is more common than in the Tanjore Style.

Mithila Painting: In the Ramayana, Tulsidas gives an elaborate description of how the entire Mithila region of Bihar was decorated for the marriage of Sita with Ram. The decorations consisted chiefly of vivid murals depicting mythological personages, deities of the Hindu pantheon and the flora and fauna of the region.
This art of painting, an established tradition even then, has survived to this day, passed down for centuries from every Maithili (resident of Mithila) mother to her daughter. Today, these ceremonial decorations are popularly identified as Madhubani paintings.

The fold paintings of Mithila or Madhubani are the exclusive monopoly of women artists. This is a communal activity and one in which young girls are allowed to assist. This enables them to learn early to draw and paint-skills which are put to the test when, as grow-up women, they are expected to present the kohbar-a picture used as a marriage proposal, to a man of their choice. Heavily charged with tantric symbolism in its basic design and composition, a kohbar depicts a pictorial intercourse using the lingam (phallus) and yoni (vulva) symbols. Not only can this fresco be seen on every bedroom wall in Mithila but the first kohbars in a courtship are used to wrap various gifts. The other central themes of Madhubani Paintings are: Vishnu, Krishna, Kali, Durga, Parvati, Lakshmi, Sam and flora and fauna of the region. Sita Devi of this school has been awarded “Padma Bhushan".

Pahari Painting: As its name suggest, this sort of painting is mainly confined to the hilly, terrain of India especially Jammu, Nurpur, Kullu, Garhwal, Kangra etc. Depiction of love in different form and style is the central theme of this painting. Its miniatures chiefly portrays the boy hood pranks of Krishna and his cowherd companions with Radha. This style originally developed in the state of Basohli of Raja Kripal Singh (1678-1694) Extensive sets, each comprising more than a hundred miniatures, were prepared Rasamanjari, the Bhagavata Purana, the Gita Govinda, the Baramasa and Ragamale themes.

Rajasthani Painting: The Rajasthani painting chiefly consists of the Marwar, Kishangarh, Jaipur, Bundi and Kota styles. The Marwar of Jodhpur style shows very bold type of expression with broad, which is fish eyes in human faces and highly stylish and similar to the Mughal style. The prominent architect of Kishangarh Painting are Raja Samant Singh (1748-64) and Nihal Chandra. Nihal Chandra developed an extraordinarily "mannerist" style which exaggerated the slender curves and almond eye on his figures.

The facial type, though idealized, is extremely lyrical in its beauty content. The most popular subjects of this painting are the loves of Krishna and Radha. The Jaipur Style flourished during the reign of Swami Pratap Singh (1778-1803) which was a period of general lawlessness and insecurity, and laxity of morals and immense luxury. Therefore, it gave rise to new approach to religion for easing of the conscience. The painting reflects the Raslila of Krishna. The Bundi painting began to concentrate on court scenes under Rao Chattar Sal and Bhao Singh and many scenes of nobler, lover and ladies in palaces were produced throughout the Seventeenth and Eighteenth centuries.

LITERATURE OF EASTERN  INDIA

Assamese Literature: Though the origin of Assamese language may be traced in the 7th century, its literary tradition started in the 13th century with the advent of Shanker Dev (1449-1568) who composed creative drama, epic and songs. In the field of prose, Bhattdev contributed a lot during the 16th century. In modern time, the British and Bengali influence may be traced. In 1873, Bible was translated in Assamese. The age of renaissance was started with the publication of Janaki Patrika which was edited jointly by Chandra Kumar Agrawal (1858-1938), Lakshmi Nath Bejbarua (1867-1938) and Hem Chandra Goswami.

The tradition of fiction or novel writing was started in 19th century by Padnath Gohai Barua and Rajnikant Bardolai. Some of the famous novelists of this phase are Dandinath Kalit, Devchandra Talukdar, Beena Barua who are still remembered. In the field of prose, Virendra Bhattacharya (1924-1997) bagged prestigious Gyanpith award. In the year 2000, Indira Goswami was given the Gyanpith award.
 
Bengali Literature: During the primary stage of its development, the Bengali literature followed the Nath School of thought and romanticism of Radha-Krishna. In the 14th century, Chandidas composed about thousands of words related to Radha-Krishna. Kirtivas Ramayan was composed in the 15th century by Kirtivas Ojha which is as popular as the Ramcharitamanasa of Tulsidas.
 
The tradition of modernity in Indian languages emerged first in Bengali literature because the British first came there and infused English with the Bengali. William Kaire translated Bible into the Bengali and also contributed in the composition of English-Bengali dictionary. The epic star, Michael Madhusudan, composed the famous epic Meghnad Badha on the line of Homer, Dante and Virgil.
 
Bankim Chandra is known for his Durgesh Nandini, Anand-math, Vish Vriksha etc., while Sharat Chandra is still remembered for his Charitrahin, Srikanta, and Badi Didi etc. The Bengali literature got international recognition when Gitanjali of Rabindranath Tagore was awarded Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913. The Pather Panchali of Vibhuti Bhushan Bandopadhaya and Ganadevta of Tarashanker Bandopadhaya were the other historical works.

Oriya Literature: Oriya is basically originated from the Magadhi dialect and it is very close to the Assamese. During the 13th and 14th centuries, the entire literary tradition was greatly influenced by the Buddhism and Bhakti (devotional) tradition and philosophy of Hinduism. Sharla Das, Balram Das, Jagnnath Das, Yashwant Das etc. contributed a lot to this devotional and cultic tradition. They were also influenced by Jaydev and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu

Fakir Mohan Seriapati is considered as the modern and popular architect of Oriya literature. He is known for his novel Galp-Salp and Chaman Aatha Gumba.
The epic Mahayatra of Radhanath Rath is widely popular. In 1993, Sitakant Mahapatra was awarded Gyanpith award. In the year 2000, the novelist, Manoj Das was awarded with Saraswati award for his novel, Amritfal.

Manipuri Literature: Manipuri is a language of Tibet-Berma family and particularly spoken in some eastern states. The literature is greatly influenced by the folk literary tradition. Some of the popular prose works in Manipuri are:
Tumil Kavya (10th century), Nikotinkhot Fambal Kab (l6th century), Letawak Lekhol and Pantoibi Khomyd (17th century). Hija Harao is an epic of ornamental style. RamNo-Gaya is another popular work based on the death of Ram. The tradition of modernity in Manipuri literature made its departure right from the works, "Kamal Singh Kale Pare".

Nepali Literature: Nepali is the language of Indo-European family and it follows Devnagari script. It is also very close to Hindi, Maithili and Bengali. In the 18th century, Nepalese literature came in light with the publication of the works of Subnand Das, Shalai Ballav Aryan and Udayanand. Sanskrit works were generally translated into Nepali. Gita was .also translated. The Adhyatam Ramayana of Bengali was translated in the 19th century by Bhanubhakt. Krishna Charitra, the first epic in Nepali, was composed by Vasant Sharma. In the 20th century, Mitrasen, Moti Ram Bhatt, Lekhnath and Balkrishna Sharma contributed a lot in the field of prose writing. Some popular novelists are Pratiman Lama, Rudraraj Pandey, Shiv Kumar Rai, Subhas Ghising etc. Balkrishna Sharma and Aryali are the popular dramatist.