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Art For Kids

Art For Kids

by | Jan 16, 2018 | Workshops

I follow the ritual of making resolutions every December to promptly break them …say by mid march or so? But this year it was different because 2017 was a little different. How different you may ask…For one thing, I started my blog ‘Strings Of Heritage’ which has opened up a new world for me. A world that is beyond a salary and a 9 to 5 job. It’s the world I love, interacting with people who love and live art, writing about them and their work. So this December I was just chalking out the next few blogs and then my tag line just struck me…. ‘passing on the legacy’. Was I really doing that? Not really. So I did not make elaborate plans or resolutions, but just started working on how I could take art and make it art for kids.
Madhubani Art For Kids An Introduction

Madhubani Art For Kids An Introduction

And my dear daughter was all there to help me out. I would just try something and ask her to try her hand at it. This was how I conceptualized and started my journey with children and art. ‘Madhubani Art for Kids – An Introduction’ was my first project as Madhubani Art is something I totally love and have been doing for quite some time now. Having done this on the wall many times over, I felt it was just the right folk art to start with. Sankalpa Montessori School with its sprawling premises right in the heart of Vijayanagar was a God sent venue. I keep counting my blessings in this regard, Ms. Jyothi Chetan the Principal has been very generous and supportive.
Madhubani Art for Kids

Madhubani Art for Kids An Introduction

Madhubani Art For Kids An Introduction

Madhubani Art For Kids An Introduction

So minus the resolutions and with just five days of planning, brainstorming with my friend Kavitha, and experimentation I started the day of the workshop full of trepidation on how the day would turn out. Would the parents and children share my love for this folk art? (Doubts, I say) As I started telling the children about Bihar and the beauty of Madhubani, my anxiety was forgotten. I could feel their keen interest and excitement on seeing the piece they would all do that day. Luckily for me, my friends Jyothi Adithya and Sahana pitched in as participants started coming in. Sandeep Nayak was all ready to click away as the kids were busy doing their masterpiece.
Madhubani Art For Kids An Introduction

Madhubani Art For Kids An Introduction

Madhubani Art for Kids An Introduction

Madhubani Art for Kids An Introduction

Madhubani Art for Kids An Introduction

Madhubani Art for Kids An Introduction

And you know the best part about the workshop? Seeing the parents as immersed in the colours as the children, seeing the joy and sense of accomplishment on the children’s faces was pure fulfillment for me. It was not just art for kids but a beautiful bonding experience for the parents. Tiny tots as small as two and half years right upto twelve years enjoyed working with the colours and Madhubani. And I could see many parents totally oblivious to everything except getting the outline right. Little Mihika who was very sure about the colours she wanted , Srishti who liked green, Nihal who wanted to draw some more, Stuti who liked orange, Aarav who wanted to make sure that the final painting was perfect, the names are many and so are the memories. Each child so special in all that they express and the way they do it. I couldn’t stop smiling for two days straight, just remembering these children. They don’t need to be taught to draw…they just need to be introduced to our rich heritage of culture and art.
Madhubani Art for Kids An Introduction

Madhubani Art for Kids An Introduction

Madhubani Art For Kids An Introduction

Madhubani Art For Kids An Introduction

This is joy. Being able to write about it and plan the next workshop is joy. Knowing what your life is about is joy. Finding my piece of heaven is joy.

Lots of Twinkles to all of you.

Anu

Patachitra from Orissa

Patachitra from Orissa

by | Aug 6, 2017 | Art & The Artist

Last week I discussed the palm leaf engravings from Orissa, with Krishna as the central figure. Today I want to give you, a glimpse of ‘Patachitra’ from Orissa. This is once again in conversation with Mr. Devasish Sahoo, an artist. With Krishnajanmashtami being celebrated next week, Krishna continues to inspire me. As He is the main deity in Orissa as Lord Jagannath, he inspires the artists in Orissa as well. Most of the ‘Patachitras’ are based on Krishna, other Gods and mythological stories. ‘Patachitra’ literally means art on canvas. ‘Pata’ is the canvas and ‘chitra’ means art. This was earlier done only on cotton canvas which is prepared in an elaborate manner. But now, we have the art on Tussar silk as well. The arrangement of the painting is similar to the palm leaf engravings. With elaborate borders, and the main theme at the centre, the space in between is to narrate the entire story of any of the mythological characters. Krishna, Rama, Dashavatara, Ramayana and Mahabharatha are favourite topics. Though there are simpler paintings, I am usually drawn to the elaborate and colourful ones.
Colourful and elaborate Patachitra
Colourful and elaborate Patachitra, with Krishna at the centre.
Preparation of canvas is an astounding process.

Cotton cloth without starch, is used for making canvas. The cloth is dipped in a solution of tamarind seeds and water over 4 to 5 days. It is sundried and laid on the tamarind seeds solution, and ‘kaitha’ or wood apple gum is applied on it. Another processed cloth is overlapped on this and gum paste is applied to stick the layers. It is again sun dried and a paste of chalk powder, tamarind seeds and wood apple gum is applied on both sides and sun dried. OOfff….such a tedious process and we are still not done! After drying this, it has to be rubbed with a stone called ‘khaddar’ several times for smoothening the canvas. After this, another stone, called ‘chikana’ stone is used for rubbing the canvas. This gives it a shine. Thank God…it’s now ready for painting. The canvas feels thick and leathery after the process.

Lord Jagannath with Balram and Subhadra is the main theme. The Dashavataras .
Lord Jagannath with Balram and Subhadra is the main theme. The Dashavataras are also depicted here.
orissa, puri jagannath
The Rathyatra or car festival with all three deities
But the colours!

In urban areas artists like us will just pick some bottles of acrylic paints, but not so in Orissa ‘Patachitras’. They use natural colours from leaves, minerals and stones. Earlier it was difficult for the artists to find these raw materials. But now they are easily available. Mr. Sahoo tells me, colour preparation takes nearly two months. Check out the different colours and their source.

White – The shells from the seaside are powdered, boiled and purified two to three times.
Black – Lamp soot is collected.
Brown – Geru stone is powdered.
Yellow – Hartal stone from Jaipur is powdered and boiled. After the water is removed, the paste is sundried.
Red – Hingulal stone found in Orissa is used.
Blue – A stone in Orissa called Khandneela is used.
Green – Leaves are dried, boiled and the paste is sieved and dried. This is ground with hand with a little water.
These colours are prepared and stored for use. A little quantity is taken and mixed with water and wood apple gum to be used as required.

orissa patachitra
Some details in an elaborate patachitra
More of black is used in this patachitra
More of black is used in this patachitra
Themes for these paintings-

1. ‘Krishna leela’ is a favourite of artists, depicting Krishna’s childhood.

Krishna leela
Krishna leela
2. Dashavatara depicting the ten forms taken by Vishnu.

3. ‘Thia Badhia’ , the representation of the Jagannath temple in Orissa.

4. ‘Rama Ravana Judha’, which is the battle between Rama and Ravana in Ramayana.

5. ‘Kanchi Abhijana’, which is the expedition against the Kingdom of Kanchi. (I have this painting, but did not know the story. But now I know!)

patachitra painting orissa
From my collection-Kanchi Abhiyan, where Lord Jagannath is on a black horse and Lord Balabhadra on a white horse. The milkmaid offers them some refreshment on their way.
6. ‘Kandarpa Leela’ of Krishna. This one is my favourite. ‘Kandarpa’ has two meanings. One is ‘Kama’, the god of love( that’s Cupid for you) and it also means amazing. These paintings portray Krishna with the gopikas in different formations. They are so under the spell of Krishna’s love, that they are entangled and aligned in different postures around him.There are four leelas here. The Kandarpa Hasti (elephant), Kandarpa Ashva (horse), Kandarpa Ratha (chariot) and Kandarpa Nouka (boat). I did not find the Kandarpa Ashva and Nouka but have the other two..yippee!!
kandapra is amazing and cupid
Kandarpa Leela of Krishna- Kandarpa Rath and Kandarpa Hasti on tussar silk

I think I am in love again…with these ‘Patachitras’. Don’t you just love them??

Twinkles to you. Have a great week.
Anupama

PS- Mr. Sahoo’s contact details have been shared in the earlier post.

A Glimpse of Madhubani

A Glimpse of Madhubani

by | Jul 23, 2017 | Art & The Artist

Madhubani per se requires no introduction. It is relatively popular among folk arts of India and is from Bihar. But for the first time since I started writing, I am not sure about where to begin. Should I begin at the beginning, when Sita from the era of Ramayan began painting in Mithila. Or shall I introduce you to Madhubani, as I came across it  in a book by Jyotindra Jain- ‘Ganga Devi: Tradition and Expression in Mithila Painting’. Or shall I introduce you to Mr. Ashokkumar Das, grandson of Late. Jagdamba Devi, the first artist in Madhubani to be conferred a national award in 1970 and Padma Shri in 1975.
So this is why, this post is only ‘A Glimpse’ of Madhubani. Let me start with Mr Ashokkumar Das, an artist from Jitwarpur village, Madhubani district, Bihar. He was in Bangalore as part of Dastakar exhibition. The first thing he mentions as we chat, is that there are five national awardees and 10 state award holders in his family. No mean feat, definitely! I am attracted to some intricate paintings with a lot of line drawings and these he enlightens me are in the Godna form.
There are four main forms in Madhubani or Mithila paintings. These forms were earlier dictated and bound by the caste or varna system prevalent. Now with the abolition of caste system, there are no restrictions. So the artists have a freedom in their artistic expressions and are not bound in any way.

The Bharni Style- This was mainly practiced by the upper castes and depicted Mythological characters in epics, especially the Ramayana and Mahabharatha which the womenfolk knew from continued recital.They used rich vibrant colours and had no restrictions. Sita Devi is considered a pioneer in this form. Bharni means filling. As the forms of Vishnu, Krishna, Kali and other Gods depicted are filled with colours, so the name.

The Katchni style- The Kayastha community practiced this form and could depict Gods and Godesses, but the colours used were limited to black and red. So they are not as vibrant in appearance. But they make up for the lack of colours with lots of linear drawings, lines and patterns. This in turn results in a beautiful form. Ganga Devi Is considered a pioneer in having created different types of line work and renderings instead of colour. I just love her work and will need a separate blog post for her…so that will have  to wait another day.
Tantric or Geru or Godna style- This was mainly practiced by the lower communities, as they did not have any exposure to the holy texts and depicted nature as around them. The filling of the background was done using diluted cow dung as wash. Sun, moon , animals, birds and the tattoos on their bodies usually formed their subjects. Some colours were allowed to be used.
Kohbar Style- This is a unique painting that is done on a wall in the nuptial chamber where the wedding ceremonies take place. It is a symbolic painting which has a very special place in Mithila’s culture. The painting is dominated by the lotus flower which symbolizes female and the bamboo plant symbolises the male sexuality. According to the ancient texts, Shiva and Parvathi are considered to be the happiest and most successful as a divine couple and they are depicted to bless the newlyweds with the same love and success in matrimony. The sun and moon are also depicted. The water creatures, love birds are symbols of fertility and love.
Ashokkumar Das discusses the features of Mithila Lok Chitra or Madhubani folk art-

  1. Two dimensional, with sharp nose and big eyes.
  2. There are no blank spaces. Geometric designs are used generously to fill the blanks.
  3. Traditionally done on mud walls plastered with cow dung but now being painted on handmade sheets.
  4. Natural colours are used. Bel leaves, mehendi leaves for green, neelkanth flower for blue, harsingar flower for pink, rose for red, tender turmeric for yellow, lamp ash for black. These are mixed with gum water so that they get bound to the paper. But in the current scenario, many use acrylic and water colours, though there are a few artists who use natural colours.
  5. Nib is used for outline(it is captured in one of the pics)

You see here, many of the paintings have fish as a common motif. That’s because fish is an ‘all in one’ symbolising love, fertility and prosperity. The artist says, “Maach, paan aur makhaan, Shubh maana jaata hai’”. (That is fish, beetle leaf and lotus seeds are good signs.) Well, we all need good signs.

When I ask him about the support they get, he is all praise for the state government and the Government of India. In fact the saying that, ‘Every cloud has a silver lining’ holds true for these artists. It was only in 1960’s when they were badly affected by draught that the government looked for alternative income sources and funded the artists to use Madhubani art onto paper, bringing the art to the limelight. I wish ‘Kaavi kale’ would also get a similar lease of life.
I find it very fascinating, that Madhubani was mainly practiced by the womenfolk and passed on from one generation to the other. In fact the bride’s skill in this department was considered very important for choosing a groom. It was only after its commercialization and recognition by the government, that men also entered the arena of painting. Mr. Ashokkumar Das gives me a snippet of gossip here…if any of you remember the serial ‘Surabhi’ hosted by Siddharth Kak and Renuka Shahane? Mr. Das tells me that he took them around to the different families practicing this art as part of the show. Well, I am happy that I got to meet him. He has offered to show me around all the artists’ homes when I go to Madhubani. And off course I am going…..

Hope you enjoyed this post. Have a great week. Lots of twinkles to you!

Anupama