Madhubani Art

Origin
Madhubani or Mithila art, a rural Indian cultural art form was
developed over 2500 years ago by women from Madhubani district of
Mithila region (of Bihar state), in the Indian sub-continent. It is
mentioned in the Hindu epic Ramayana that King Janaka, Sita’s
father, asked his painters to create Madhubani paintings for his
daughter’s wedding. Since then, the traditional knowledge was
passed down from generations to generations and the art form was
adorned within the houses of the region. The women of the village
also depicted these paintings on the walls of their homes & is still
practiced in institutions spread across the Mithila region & Bihar.

Salient Features
There is ritual content for particular occasions, such as birth or
marriage, and festivals which are usually characterized within this art,
in the form of geometrical patterns. The fact that these complex
mathematical patterns were used in Madhubani paintings makes
them more intriguing and iconic. If the artists come across empty
spaces even after completing the painting, they usually fill up those
empty spaces with the motifs of flowers, animals, birds, and
geometrical patterns. A double line is usually drawn as the border.
Madhubani paintings mostly depict people and their association with
nature and scenes and deities from the ancient epics. sun, the moon,
and religious plants like tulsi are also widely painted, along with
scenes from social events like weddings.
Madhubani art has several distinctive styles: Bharni (depicting the
pictures of Hindu gods and goddesses), Katchni, (depicting depict
animals, flowers, and other natural aspects), Tantrik (portraying
depict Hindu mythological characters), Godna (signifying natural
creatures such as animals, birds, plants, tree of life, and
flowers), and Kohbar (depicting Hindu wedding ceremonies, and
they are primarily made on the walls of the bride and groom’s
home);

The colors used in Madhubani paintings are usually derived from

plants and other natural sources such as powdered rice, colors
derived from turmeric, pollen, pigments, indigo, various flowers,
sandalwood, and leaves of various plants and trees, etc. Also,
several natural sources are combined and are processed to obtain
the desired colors. The colors are often bright and pigments like
lampblack and ochre are used to create black and brown
respectively & are often prepared by the artists themselves. Instead
of contemporary brushes, this art is done with a variety of tools,
including fingers, twigs, brushes, nib-pens, and matchsticks, using
natural pigments;

Sustainability Attributes
This art form impacts not only civilizational narration of rituals /
creativity and expression but also stand tall for social and
environmental causes. Since the paintings have been concentrated
to a particular region over a century, they have been accorded the
GI or Geographical Indication status to recognize its regional
history, & identity. In commemoration of the “International Year of
Creative Economy for Sustainable Development”, at the “74th
United Nations General Assembly”, & the pandemic’s effect on
creativity industry, this initiative seeks to support “Rising
Civilizational Artists” towards the quest for promoting & conserving
the civilizational art form & traditional knowledge;

The niche aspects of skilling by the “Earth Initiative’s” shall include:

Civilizational Art Narration I Rising Artist Session I Skill Session

 “Civilizational Vistas”

The Earth Initiative in

commemoration of “India @
75”, & the “International Year
of Creative Economy” by the
United Nations, seeks to
enable artists showcase heir
incredible talents & also spur
traditional folk art forms, &
also to have this skill
showcased / taught amongst
a broad horizon of
individuals;

To register for an enthralling

customized individual or group
sessions, or an exclusive children’s
sessions, do log-in to
www.imlishop.in/collections/folk-art-
workshops
or email us at -
info.earthinitiative@gmail.com

Artist: Swati Sneha

 Earth Initiative, twins the “Skill Development", of the most
vibrant, colorful & intricate folk art form of Mithila (India) &
revival of civilizational traditions!

Content

Introduction to the history of Mithila’s Vibrant Folk Art Form

~ through Images & Short Film; .,
~ Illustration of how this colour therapy to distress & improve
concentration;
~ Rising Artist Session;

Beginners Course

~ Exquisite borders, ,animal / nature motifs, symbolism etc.,

~ Learn popular motifs & border designs along with unique
colours;

Detailed Course
~ Explore the nuances of this traditional civilizational art &
work with templates to create folk themes, mythological
stories, people & their association with nature, deities
from ancient epics;
~ Develop unique art works by innovating creativity,
experimenting with civilizational traditional art form of
Madhubani art on canvas, ceramic Mug or coasters;
~ Learn civilizational practices & knowledge on creation of
natural colours, use of traditional tools for painting etc.,
~ Create Fusion of Art Forms , i.e. Mandala & Madhubani
Traditional Art Forms etc.,
~ Develop contemporary art forms imbibing modern
automation & technological developments;