KRISHNA THE FLAUTIST- MY MADHUBANI PAINTING

Hers is my Madhubani Painting 

of Lord Krishna playing 

His magical flute in the gardens

of the the Brindavan...

on the banks of 

the swirling Yamuna river....

PEACOCKS - A MADHUBANI PAINTING

After a long time ,I am sharing a simple and colorful

Madhubani Painting 

depicting the all time favorite motif

in various Indian arts and crafts - The Peacock 

or the Mayoora...

these multicolored peacocks  

capture the essence of the true original 

Madhubani artisan- the unlettered woman

from a village of the Madhuban district of Bihar...

for her these paintings were the way she 

celebrated life and every moment of it too...

CHITCHAT- A MADHUBANI PAINTING

Here are these two village belles

engaged in a relaxing,friendly talk...

a chit chat session will definitely

help them unwind and feel refreshed

after a long day of work in 

the fields of the Madhubani village...

In this Madhubani painting

I have tried to capture

simple , rustic charm and 

the mood of the local folks engaged

 in intimate gossip session,

which is common to all parts of this earth...

SURYA- THE SUN GOD- MADHUBANI PAINTING

Here is SURYA- the Sun God

Portrayed in Madhubani art form...

Observe there are three figures-

The consort of Surya-

and Surya at dawn and dusk...

The glowing orange faced Surya

depicts the early morning sun

and the pale yellow faced Surya

portrays dusk or sunset...

VINAYAKA- A MADHUBANI PAINTING...

                                    HERE STANDS WITH REGAL SPLENDOUR

                                    MY VINAYAKA (GANESHA) ....

                                    DONE IN THE STYLE OF MITHILA PAINTINGS

                                    OR MADHUBANI PAINTINGS AS THEY ARE

                                    POPULARLY CALLED....

                                    BRIGHT COLORS ATTAINED FROM VEGETABLE DYES

                                    WHICH DO NOT FADE THROUGH CENTURIES...

                                     DOUBLE LINES IN BLACK-INTERSPERSED WITH TINY LINES

                                     ARE USED TO SEGREGATE THE VARIOUS PORTIONS OF THE  

                                     PAINTING FROM ONE ANOTHER...

                                     THESE PAINTINGS WERE ORIGINALLY DONE ON WALLS

                                     OF THE HOUSES AND OTHER PUBLIC PLACES IN THE

                                      BIHARI VILLAGES IN THE DISTRICT OF MADHUBAN...

                                      ARE NOW BEING COMMERCIALLY DONE ON WOOD,

                                       CLOTH  CANVAS,PAPER ETC...WITH COMMERCIALLY

                                       AVAILABLE BRIGHT COLORS....

SRI KRISHNA -THE COWHERD- A MADHUBANI PAINTING...

                     HERE IS  KRISHNA  , THE COWHERD OF BRINDAVAN...

                     PORTRAYED IN A VIBRANTLY COLORED MADHUBANI PAINTING-
                   
                     WATCH HIS COW NESTLING AROUND HIS FEET IN TOTAL SURRENDER

                     AS IT LISTENS TO THE SWEET MELODIES FLOAT OUT OF HIS

                      DIVINE FLUTE...WHICH SPELLBINDS NOT ONLY HIS COWS....

                      BUT THE FOLKS OF BRINDAVAN ,AND ALL THE LIVES

                      IN THIS UNIVERSE...

LITTLE KRISHNA- A MADHUBANI PAINTING

 A little kid accompained his mother to my place.

As we were busy working with a mural,the little one got restless and started

pestering and disturbing us...

I worked out a tiny strategy!!!!

I gave him a small Madhubani sketch and asked him to trace it out in a paper...

That kept him busy for the whole session...

Next day he was back ...He wanted to paint it!!!!!!

and with a wee bit of help and guidance on color choice and and crayons and sketch pens...

he was able to do  this colorful Kutti Krishna ....

and ,God!!!How proud he was!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!and his Mamma too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

DRAWING WATER - A MADHUBANI PAINTING

         

We may cross the boundaries of states,climate and language...

But in all Indian villages-women drawing water from the well ,

or fetching water for their homes in heavy pots is a

common sight from the days of yore till date...

No wonder this is a favorite theme in almost all folk arts...

After all,it is this water that is going to keep their homes and lives going...


In this colorful MADHUBANI PAINTING  or Mithila Painting

we see these colorfully attired women of Bihar drawing water for their

home needs from the village well.

MADHUBANI PAINTING - MATSYA AVATAR

                                             

                                  The first among the ten avatars of Lord  Sri MahaVishnu,

                                  The MATSYA AVATAR-(where he takes the form of a fish-MATSYA)

                                  to save the Earth...is depicted here in MADHUBANI  ART  FORM...


                               

MADHUBANI PAINTING -RADHA KRISHNA

                                       The divine lovers- RADHA AND KRISHNA are portrayed
               
                                       in a MADHUBANI STYLE PAINTING ..........

                                       Done on hand made paper with acrylic or poster colors....
                           
                                       this style of paintings are done in bright shades...

MADHUBANI PAINTING- VILLAGE BELLE

                   
                                           
                                         In this brightly colored MADHUBANI PAINTING
                                         I have portrayed a village belle carrying a pot of water-

                                         As you know,carrying water is a regular job of women
                                         in many Indian villages even today...
                                       
                                                              

MADHUBANI PAINTINGS THROUGH AGES...

Madhubani paintings form a part of Indian folk paintings. It is an ancient art form that can be dated to more than 1000years…In fact ,we have a reference to Madhubani Paintings in the Indian Gazette-dating some 300 years back…

One of the many traditional Indian art forms is 'Madhubani Paintings' also known as 'Mithila Paintings'. Madhubani paintings art, named after the village Madhubani (Bihar), where it is practiced, find their origin in Indian epic Ramayna. The art was originally practiced by the women folk only, serving as a creative expression tool for everyday lives and happenings.

                                       
                        THE WATER CARRIER FROM MADHUBAN

Traditionally done on freshly plastered mud wall of huts these paintings, over the years have graduated to cloth, hand-made paper and canvas.

Madhubani paintings are marked by abstract like figures of deities and bold use of colors. Tradionally, this particular art form was done on after applying cow dung and mud paste on walls to render a dark background. Then ornate floral patterns, abstract figures or borders etc are made using white rice paste and vibrant vegetable colors.

It is during the 1970s that Madhubani Art reached the global audience ,when they were made and marketed in a commercial scale.


Dark double outlines joined with smaller lines,bright colors and disproportionate figures are a few of the hall mark of this folk art practised bu simple,unlettered women of Bihar.