Sunday 24 April 2011

Origins of Mithila Paintings

The origins of Madhubani painting or Mithila Painting are shrouded in antiquity. Tradition states that this style of painting originated at the time of the Ramayana, when King Janak commissioned artists to do paintings at the time of marriage of his daughter, Shri Sita Maa, to Lord Ram.
Madhubani painting has been done traditionally by the women of villages around the present town of Madhubani (the literal meaning of which is forests of honey) and other areas of Mithila. The painting was traditionally done on freshly plastered mud wall of huts, but now it is also done on cloth, hand-made paper and canvas.
As Madhubani painting has remained confined to a compact geographical area and the skills have been passed on through centuries, the content and the style have largely remained the same. Madhubani paintings also use two dimensional imagery, and the colors used are derived from plants. Ochre and lampblack are also used for reddish brown and black respectively.
Madhubani paintings mostly depict nature and Hindu religious motifs, and the themes generally revolve around Hindu deities like Krishna, Ram, Shiva, Durga, Lakshmi, and Saraswati. Natural objects like the sun, the moon, and religious plants like tulsi are also widely painted, along with scenes from the royal court and social events like weddings. Generally no space is left empty; the gaps are filled by paintings of flowers, animals, birds, and even geometric designs. Objects depicted in the walls of kohabar ghar (where newly wed couple see each other in the first night) are symbols of sexual pleasure and procreation.
Traditionally, painting was one of the skills that was passed down from generation to generation in the families of the Mithila Region, mainly by women.[4] The painting was usually done on walls during festivals, religious events, and other milestones of the life-cycle such as birth, Upanayanam (sacred thread ceremony), and marriage.
In this paintings airtists uses leaf, Herbs, Flowers to make the colour which is used to draw paintings. Modern days Madhubani Paintings Categories in three diggerent types
Source:http://books.google.com/books?el.

Thursday 21 April 2011

Colors and setting in Mithila painting.

Mithila paintings can be described as a style of painting, rather than a set of pictures. It employs natural colors, with the most popular being deep red - derived from Kusuma flower. The other colors include green - from Bel trees, black - from burnt jowar, light yellow - from turmeric mixed with banyan leaf milk and orange - from Palasa flower. The colors, which are mostly bright, are used to impart two-dimensional imagery to the paintings. Madhubani painters use a very unusual form of brush for the art. Handmade, the brush is created out of a bamboo stick, with its end being slightly frayed.
 
Subjects:
The subject of Mithila paintings is mostly religious, including motifs of deities like Shiva, Vishnu, Krishna, Ram, Lakshmi, and Saraswati. Durga and Kali are also pre-dominant. The paintings also depict natural objects, like sun and moon, and religious plants, like tulsi (holy basil). Other motifs include scenes from the royal court and social events, like weddings, apart from activities from the daily life. In most of the cases, you will never find empty spaces in Mithila paintings. More often than not, the gaps are filled with paintings of flowers, animals, birds, and even geometric designs.
 
Basic Characteristics
One of the basic characteristics of Madhubani paintings comprises of the vibrant and bold use of colors. Even traditional geometric patterns, which are related to, and support, the main theme is another typical aspect that one can find in the paintings. You will also come across distinctive styles, like double line border, elaborate floral patterns, abstract-like figures of deities and bulging eyes and a jolting nose (as a part of the face of the figures) in Madhubani paintings. In fact, all these aspects are what make this art form different from the others and impress the connoisseurs of art.
 
Source: Google.

Tuesday 19 April 2011

Some belief of the people of Mithila Area.

As per the belief of the people of Madhubani that Gods visit each house in the morning to bless them with luck and prosperity, Madhubani paintings started as a welcome painting on the walls, doors and floors for the Gods. Till the 1960s it was a purely a decorative art. But the Bihar famine of 1964-65 took its toil on the people of Madhubani and they had to shift from agriculture to other forms livelihood. And with that started the commercialization of the Maithili paintings; it shifted from walls and floors to paper, satin, sarees, dupattas, etc, without deviating from its original themes, the themes of religion and mythology. Most of the people of Madhubani now depend on these paintings for their daily necessities.
A paste of cow dung and mud is applied on the walls and floors to give a perfect black background on which pictures are drawn with white rice paste; bright vegetable colors are then applied on the figures making them more vibrant. A great number of Madhubani painters still apply a thin layer of cow dung and mud paste on their canvases to give a more authentic look and also because it helps in proper absorption of color.
Source:india times.
nternational recognition. 
indianhandicrafts.co.in

Bihar Related 

Sunday 17 April 2011

Tricks and Tips of of Mithila Paintings

Here are some tips and tricks which should be kept in mind when you are you learning making Mithila Painting:


1. Choose a colorful design: It is often seen that tradionally there are only basic colours used like orange, green and red but you can add colurs like pink, purple, blue to make it more attractive.

2- Choose a design that is simple.
The design pattern should be simple and clear !

3-Trace the design well: If you do not trace it well, you will find yourself in trouble later. You can make improvements in designs like changing the features of face later.


4-Choose a theme.
If you are making more than one painting then choose a theme e.g.Krishna because each painting has certain meaning or situation

5-Don't limit youself : If you don't want a painting then you can always make a bookmark, card or table mats with Madhubani and laminate them.

6. Add a beautiful border: Make sure you have a border . It will add a new dimension to your painting


Saturday 16 April 2011

Back home.

काल्हि बिहार संपर्क क्रांति एक्सप्रेस स दिल्ही स गाम एअल्हू ,पता नहीं की बात छपरा तक ट्रेन  समय स पहिने आ 
तकरा बाद  दरभंगा तक में ट्रेन २ घंटा लेट . २ दिन पहिने नीक बारिस भेल छल ताहि स मोसन  बढ़िया छल!
जुर शीतल के जोश देखैयल , आम क गाछ में खूब टिकुला लागल, ! देख क लागल जे हमर गाम दिल्ही ओ 
कश्मीर स निक हमर गाम  केओती  केवल १  समयसा  जे बिजली  क दरसन नहीं इन्वेर्टर  सेहो डिस्चार नहीं रहला के कारने खैर .......! सेंटर में छुट्टी छैक , सोम के खुजत.    

Wednesday 13 April 2011

Mithila Paintings: Background

The Mithila painting is one of the living creative activities of the women of this region. It is a famous folk painting on paper, cloth, readymade garments, movable objects etc., mainly by the village women of Mithila. Originally it is a folk art, practiced by the women of all castes and communities, including the Muslims, on walls and floors using the natural and vegetable colours. Later some people took interest in it and motivated the women to translate their art from walls and floors to the canvas and now the new form has given this a very distinct identity in the art world as well as in the market. This folk art has a history, a cultural background, women’s monopoly and distinct regional identification. Where is Mithila? What is the cultural and historical significance of this land? Why is it that this art is that special in Mithila? We are trying to teach to the present genaration. 

Tuesday 12 April 2011

Mithila Painting Training centre

I    am in Delhi since 3rd ofApril and enjoying with the kids. Now I am worried for the centre ,  because by
end of this month First batch will complite their course and 2nd batch will start around 5th May.
I will have to make so many changes and arrangements. To day I planned to go back as early as possible.
it will depend on Railway booking.

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