Tribal Art of India

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Trribal A
Art off India
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All kinds of trib
bal arts of Ind
dia done by me are disp
played here.
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http://mathu‐art‐‐adventure.blogspot.com//
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Wa
arli [Mah
harashtrra]
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Warli - Maarriage Proocession
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Warrli paintingg, one of th
he most inttriguing forms of Indian folk paaintings, is a gift from
m a small
tribee of the saame name living in M
Maharashtrra, India. Exxecuted in n white on austere mud walls,
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thesse tribal paaintings are
e spontaneeous expreessions of ffolk life, cu
ustoms andd beliefs.
http://www.math
hu‐art‐adventture.blogspott.com/ Math
hangi Vedagiri
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Warli – Village Scene ↑↓
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http://www.mathu‐art‐adventure.blogspot.com/ Mathangi Vedagiri
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Madhubani [Bihar]
Centuries old, this art of Bihar is done mainly by the females of the family, and is a part of the
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daily ritual. It is believed that every morning the gods come invisibly to the household to bless
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the members of the family and to bring more prosperity. So this art started as a daily welcome
painting for the Gods by decorating the outside of the house, the walls or the floor.
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The walls and floors of the house were coated with cow dung and mud paste. When it dried it
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gave a perfect dark background to the bright paintings done with white rice paste. The diluted
cow dung is also a natural antiseptic which is why it is valued as a floor and wall covering
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anyway ‐ regardless of whether any one was going to paint on it!
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There are three types of Madhubani painting: Brahmin Style, Tattoo Style, and Kshatriya Style.
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Madhubani Lord Krishna – Brahmin Style
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Madhubani Tree of Life – Brahmin Style
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Madhubani – Ardhanareeshwarar* Brahmin Style
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*Ardhanareeshwarar - Half Shiva half Parvati, is a God worshipped by the Hindus.

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Madhubani Tattoo Style
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Madhubani Kshatriya Style Sun
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Warli in Madhubani Style
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Madhuwarli – Tribal men dancing around the Tree of Life
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I have drawn a Warli picture and colored it in Madhubani style [including Madhubani border]
using Indian ink.
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Patachitra [Orissa]
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Patachitra – Lord Krishna with Gopikas
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The word Patachitra is derived from the Sanskrit word “Pata”, which means a painted piece of
cloth, a picture, a tablet or a plate; “chitra” means painting or picture. Elements of folk and
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sophisticated art and craft characterize each finely executed Patachitra. It is the traditional
art of Orissa. The intricate picture is drawn using vegetable colors on a special fabric (matha).
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This fabric is stuck to a wooden base using glue (kaitha atha).
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Phad Painting [Rajasthan]
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Phad Painting – King
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Phad painting is a beautiful specimen of Indian cloth painting. Rajasthan in Western India is its
place of origin. In the simplest term Phad can be described as a large painting on cloth, which
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venerates the deeds of a hero. The smaller version of phada is known as phadakye. Generally,
the life events of Goga Chauhan, Prithaviraj Chauhan, Amar Singh Rathor, Tejaji, and many
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others were illustrated on the Phadas in the earlier times but today the stories from the life of
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Papuji, and Narayandevji are primarily depicted. For their unique beauty and chronicling
character, Phada painting has come to be regarded as one of the most sought after folk
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paintings in the world.

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I have done the above painting on handmade paper using poster colors.
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Saura Painting [Orissa]
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Saura Painting
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This folk art painting is known as ‘Saura painting’. The ‘Saura’ tribe of Orissa makes these
paintings. The theme of this folk painting has been drawn from their everyday life, showing
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several rows of human forms engaged in daily or ceremonial activities. In alternating set of
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rows, differing moods of dancing and warring people are portrayed. Seated on horses or
elephants, men go on wars to protect the natural rhythm of life back home. At the base of the
painting, we see men around a tree, signifying the close connection between man and nature.
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Gond Painting [Madhya Pradesh]
Tribal painting, though popular among most tribes in Madhya Pradesh, is extremely well
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honed as an art among the Gond tribe of Mandala. They have a peculiar style that reflects
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their creativity and unique view of things around them. They paint deities, pictures of Nature
or simply an event of day to day life. Very colorful and descriptive this art has its own charm.
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Gond painting uses a technique of creating textures by pattern. In Gond and other tribes
painting is not restricted to paper and does not entirely depend on synthetic colors. They
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make the ground and the wall their canvas and use limestone or charcoal as mediums to make
various decorative paintings for their houses.
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Gond Painting Tree of Life
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Gond Painting Birds
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Kalighat painting [Kolkata]
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Kalighat Painting – Goddess Saraswathi
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Kalighat painting derives its name from its place of origin Kalighat, in Kolkata ‐ the erstwhile
capital of British India. This painting form has its roots in the cultural upheavals of nineteenth
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century colonial Bengal. At this time a huge number of village folk had migrated from rural
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Bengal and settled in and around the famous Kalighat temple. Amongst them, many were
potters and scroll painters. These were the people whose painting style and themes later came
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to be known as Kalighat painting. They used watercolors and painted on inexpensive mill
papers. Brushes were made from squirrel and calf hair. The style is characterized by formal
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and linear economy, meaningful gestures, and quality brushwork and flawless rhythmic
strokes. The drawings are bold and attractive and at the same time their technique is different
and simple.
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Lakshmi Puja Alpona Pattern [Eastern India]
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Lakshmi Puja Alpona Pattern
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Alpana or Alpono designs are drawn during festivals and Hindu rituals in Bengal, Orissa and
other parts of Eastern India. It is also drawn during Kojari Lakshmi Puja to welcome Goddess
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Lakshmi. The designs drawn during Lakshmi Puja display the feet of Goddess Lakshmi.

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Kalamkari [Andhra Pradesh]
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Kalamkari – Lord Shiva
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Kalamkari is an exquisite ancient craft of painted and printed fabrics. It derives its name from
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"Kalam" meaning Pen, and "Kari" meaning work, literally Pen‐work. It is hand painting as well
as block printing with vegetable dyes. Very old, this art knew it's apogee in the rich person
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kingdom of Golconde [the current city of Hyderabad, Andra Pradesh]. It has evolved through
trial and error over the last 3000 years. Techniques of craftsmanship in Kalamkari were
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handed down within the families from generation to generation. In Andra Pradesh, both the
Masulipatnam and Srikalahasti villages are recognized as major centres for Kalamkari painting.
Thus came the two styles of Kalamkari painting Masulipatnam style and Srikalahasti style.
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Pithora [Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh]
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Pithora Painting
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Pithora Paintings are much more than colorful images on walls for the tribes of Rathwas,
Bhilals, and Naykas of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. They signify the advent of an auspicious
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occasion (like weddings, childbirth, festivals) in the family or community. An art form, which
essentially conveys the joy and celebration of a community, has to reflect the collective mood
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of it, and Pithora paintings with their colors and animated figures mirrors the sentiments of
their creators.
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The essence of a Pithora painting lies in its earthiness; everything from the theme to the
execution has the ethnicity of rural India. Even materials used are quite exotic: the colors are
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prepared by mixing pigments with milk and liquor prepared from the auspicious Mahuda tree.
Indeed the joie de vivre of the community couldn't have found a more suitable mean of
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expression.
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The tribes

the tribes of Rathwas, Bhils and Nayaks of central Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh practice this
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Art form.
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The Rathwas have a distinct cultural heritage and an interesting historical background. They
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mimic the upper caste of Tadagis in their way of life. They depend on the forests around them
for a livelihood. The forests therefore are sacred for them. The family is the most important
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unit of this tribe and they practice arranged marriages, however clan exogamy is also
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observed. Their intrinsic aesthetics is evident in their quaintly done mud hits, which are
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adorned with colorful Pithora Paintings.

The ancient tribes of Bhils too practice this art form with meticulous diligence.
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The Ritual called Pithora Paintings
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Pithora Painting can be called a ritual rather that an art form for it is “performed” to thank
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God or for a wish or a boon to be granted. A comprehensive understanding of this ritual will
call for a narrative‐ the head priest of the community who is called “Badwa”, is summoned
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when a problem occurs in a family. The problems are narrated to the Badwa “who offers
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solutions, which almost always involves the painting of Pithoras on the walls of the house. The
Pithora Baba is considered to be the reigning deity of the community and his presence is
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considered to be the solution of all problems. The first wall of the house is considered to be
the right place for a Pithora. A Pithora is however, considered to be a three‐wall affair, so the
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first wall and the other two walls around it are prepared for the painting. The walls to be
painted are first plastered with mud and cow dung by the unmarried girls of the household,
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and then coated with chalk powder. This process is called lipna. And then the painters
proceed to do their work.
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Kerala Mural [Kerala]
Kerala mural paintings are the frescos depicting mythology and legends, which are drawn on
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the walls of temples and churches in South India, principally in Kerala. Ancient temples,
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churches and palaces in Kerala, South India, display an abounding tradition of mural paintings
mostly dating back between the 9th to 12th centuries CE when this form of art enjoyed Royal
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patronage.
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Kerala Mural – Lord Dakshinamurthy
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Kerala Mural – Lord Krishna
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*Ardhanareeshwarar - Half Shiva half Parvati, is a God worshipped by the Hindus.

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