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STUDY MATERIAL FOR VISUAL ART (THEORY PAPER)

AMRITHA SHERGIL

Amrita Shergil famous Paintings: Amrita Sher-Gil was an eminent Indian painter
born to a Punjabi Sikh father and a Hungarian Jewish mother, sometimes known as
India's Frida Kahlo, and today considered an important woman painter of 20th
century India, whose legacy stands on a par with that of the Masters of Bengal
Renaissance; she is also the 'most expensive' woman painter of India". Her early
childhood was spent in Hungary and then her family shifted to Shimla India.
Noticing her talent for painting, her mother put her in some of the famous schools
in Italy and France. In 1934, Amrita Shergil returned back to Shimla, India. She
was totally moved by the sadnees of the people around her and decided to paint the
life of the poor. Amrita Shergil was influenced by the Mughal and Pahari School of
paintings. Amrita Shergil paintings have a beautiful blend of the Western and
Indian styles of painting.

Woman Painting Amrita Sher Gil Group of Three Girls


Camel painting Ancient storyteller painting

Raja Ravi Varma: Life History

Raja Ravi Varma (1848 1906) of Kilimanoor Palace can be considered a painter
whose work represented a turning point in Indian painting. He was born into the
princely state of Travancore, Kerala, and began drawing on the palace walls. His
uncle recognized the talent on the wall and started to teach him the basics or
drawing and painting. From then on Raja Ravi Varma came under the tutelage of
other master artists that guided his craft to what it became.

He moved into the Travancore Palace to study under the resident artist who taught
him to paint with water colour. Subsequently a British painter introduced him to oil
painting. Raja Ravi Varma used the medium of oil to explore Hindu mythology,
nude and semi-nude figures of women draped in saris on canvasses.

Most of his oil paintings are based on Hindu epic stories and characters. In 1873 he
won the First Prize at the Madras Painting Exhibition. He became a world famous
Indian painter after winning in 1873 Vienna Exhibition.

Many of his oil paintings are classic and his unique Indian style has later
influenced artists and designers worldwide. Here we have displayed pictures of
some of the classic oil paintings and oleographs of Raja Ravi Varma.

Techniques of Raja Ravi Varma

Bringing detail and realism to Indian imagery with a delicate interplay of


light and shadows, Raja Ravi Varma is known for his stunning canvasses
that have influenced generations of Indian artists.
The first to use European realism and art techniques with Indian subjects, his
portrayal of Indian Gods and mythological characters shaped Indian
calendar art, and greatly influenced Indian literature and the film industry!

LADY WITH A LAMP HAMSA DAMAYANTI

PATACHITRA/ICON PAINTING OF ORISSA

The patachitras of Orissa are icon paintings that include the wall paintings,
manuscript painting, palm-leaf etching, and painting on cloth, both cotton and silk.
Chitrakar painters in and around Puri practice this living art form. The village of
Raghurajpur is where many chitrakars live in an area dedicated to them called
Chitrakar Sahe. This art of painting on cloth can be traced back to the
establishment of the shrine of Lord Jagannath at Puri in Orissa.

The materials used in the paint are from vegetable, earth, and mineral sources.
Black is made out of lampblack, yellow from haritali stone, and red from hingal
stone. White is prepared from crushed, boiled, and filtered shells. The subject
matter of the patachitras include religious, mythological, and folk themes. Krishna
leela and Lord Jagannath are important motifs.

The patachitra when painted on cloth follows a traditional process of preparation of


the canvas. First the base is prepared by coating the cloth with the soft, white,
stone powder of chalk and a glue made from tamarind seeds. This gives the cloth
tensile strength and a smooth, semi-absorbent surface, allowing it to accept the
paint. The artist does not use a pencil or charcoal for the preliminary drawings. It is
a tradition to complete the borders of the painting first. The painter then starts
making a rough sketch directly with the brush using light red and yellow. The main
flat colours are applied next";" the colours used are normally white, red, yellow,
and black. The painter then finishes the painting with fine stokes of black brush
lines, giving the effect of pen work. When the painting is completed it is held over
a charcoal fire and lacquer is applied to the surface. This makes the painting water
resistant and durable, besides giving it a shining finish.

The materials used in the paint are from vegetable, earth, and mineral sources.
Black is made out of lampblack, yellow from haritali stone, and red from hingal
stone. White is prepared from crushed, boiled, and filtered shells. The subject
matter of the patachitras include religious, mythological, and folk themes. Krishna
leela and Lord Jagannath are important motifs. The materials used in the paint are
from vegetable, earth, and mineral sources. Black is made out of lampblack,
yellow from haritali stone, and red from hingal stone. White is prepared from
crushed, boiled, and filtered shells. The subject matter of the patachitras include
religious, mythological, and folk themes. Krishna leela and Lord Jagannath are
important motifs.

These paintings became an important art form with the ornamentation of Lord
Jagannath in the innermost sanctum, where paintings on especially treated cloth or
pata of the deities were done by the temple painter. The themes were tribal and
folk. These paintings became an important art form with the ornamentation of Lord
Jagannath in the innermost sanctum, where paintings on especially treated cloth or
pata of the deities were done by the temple painter. The themes were tribal and
folk.

PATACHITRA

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