About Me

My photo
I am collecting Indian Heritage and culture related vintage postcards, paintings, prints etc. and exhibited them at several locations across India in various events and also sharing them with school and college children by giving presentations to them on Indian Heritage and Culture with my collections and also documenting puppetry etc. intangible performances.

Saturday 23 March 2013

Palm Leaf Paintings of Orissa


Palm Leaf Paintings

One of the most ancient crafts of the world, etching and paintings on the palm leaf still thrives in the state of Orissa in India. Called Talapatrachitras there, the art has reached new heights there. The palm leaf etchings are treasured decorations of all Indian home.
The art originated when written communication began. Messages and manuscripts were written on the palm leaf to be disseminated. Gradually the trend to decorate the text with images began and it became an art in itself. The ethnic art were still one of the most respected ones there and is practiced by the artists primarily in Puri and Cuttak.

The ethnic art form essentially consists of inscribing letters and artistic designs on palm-leaf, mostly cut into standard sizes and held together with two wooden plank covers stringed through a hole in the center. To prepare the palm leaf, the unripe leaves of the palm tree are first cut and semidried. They are then buried in swamps for 4-5 days for seasoning and the dried in shade. These are then stitched or stringed together as per the need. At times they are stitched after the etching is complete. 

Etching is done within lines using an iron pen on leaf strips. A paste made of bean leaves, charcoal made of burnt coconut shells, til oil and turmeric is rubbed on the etching that highlights the figures. Colors are hardly used in this are, whatever are used as fillers and in very subdued tones. Vegetable and mineral colors are used for painting.

The artists of palm leaf etchings capture the themes of mythological incidents, Gods and Goddesses figures complete with details of hair style and dress, animals, flowers and trees etc. Radha and Krishna, Durga, Ganesha and Saraswati are the most commonly used themes. Stories and incidents of Mahabharat, Ramayana and other epics are also etched. The paintings and drawings also present excellent scenes of nature.

The above text courtesy on Palm Leaf paintings from the website of  odisha.gov.in 



Palm Leaf Painting and Etching

Palm leafs have been used since very early days of civilization as a medium of written communication. Dried palm leafs are stitched together to form booklets or long pages and they are scribbled on with a sharp metal pen. Slowly, over a period of time, illustrations were included along with the text and that eventually evolved to a full art form. Colors, derived from vegetable dyes, charcoal and other natural products are used to give vibrant colors to the paintings.

The skillful hands of master artists produce unbelievably intricate pictures on palm leaves. This art form today is much respected and still practiced in may places. They can be seen prominently displayed and traded in the lanes of Cuttak, Puri, Raghurajpur and Chitrakarashi.

















The above text and image courtesy from the blog of Mr.Tanmay of Bangalore, Karnataka  http://elusive42.windforwings.com/2009/07/bhubaneswar-wall-paintings-art-and.html  with his permission. Mr.Tanmay has a great blog on Indian Histry, Heritage and Culture which is a very worthy blog. Mr.Tanmay thanks for sharing very valuable information on various aspects of Indian heritage etc. through your great blog of elusive42.windforwings.com.

In  my collection i have a book on Palm Leaf Etchings of Orissa written by noted research scholar Shri Durga Prashad Patnaik. This is my book on Palm Leaf Etchings of Orissa.


Also in my collection i have one Miniature Sheet issued by Indian postal department on Jayadeva and Geetagovinda.

Jayadeva (Oriyaଜୟଦେବ, (Bengaliজয়দেব) Sanskrit जयदेव) was a Sanskrit poet circa 1200 AD. He is most known for his composition, the epic poem Gita Govinda, which depicts the divine love of Krishna, an avatar of Vishnu, and his consort, Radha. This poem, which presents the view that Radha is greater than Hari, is considered an important text in the Bhakti movement of Hinduism. Jayadeva was born to a Hindu Brahmin family.

The Gita Govinda (Oriyaଗୀତ ଗୋବିନ୍ଦ, Devanagari: गीत गोविन्द) (Song of  Govinda) is a work composed by the 12th-century poet,  Jayadeva, who was born in  Kenduli Sasan near Puri in Odisha. It describes the relationship between Krishna and the gopis (female cow herders) of  Vrindavana, and in particular one gopi named Radha. This work has been of great importance in the development of the bhakti traditions of Hinduism.

The Gita Govinda is organized into twelve chapters. Each chapter is further sub-divided into twenty four divisions called Prabandhas. The prabandhas contain couplets grouped into eights, called Ashtapadis. It is mentioned that Radha is greater than Krishna. The text also elaborates the eight moods of Heroine, the Ashta Nayika  in its verses, which over the years has been an inspiration for many compositions and choreographic works in Indian Classical dances.

The above text courtesy on Jayadeva and Gita Govinda from the website of wikipedia.org  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gita_Govinda

This Jayadeva and Geetagovinda miniature released by Honorable Chief Minister Shri Navin Patnaik of Orissa (Odisha) State on 27th July, 2009. This is the Jayadeva and Geetagovinda miniature sheet release function photo.


Post Master General Yasodhara Menon (Left) and Hon'ble Chief Minister Shri Navin Patnaik released this special miniature sheet on Saint Poet Jayadeva and Geetagovinda at Bhabaneshwar on 27th July, 2009.

This is Jayadeva and Geetagovinda miniature sheet in my collection. Also i have a set of 10 maxim cards on Jayadeva and Geetagovinda in my collection. These maxim cards prepared by Sri Hemanth Kumar Jain of Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh state.












In my collection i have some Palm Leaf paintings of Orissa. I got them from Orissa state.



















Monday 18 March 2013

Batik Paintings

Batik is very ancient art of making paintings using Wax. The technique of batik is a demanding one because the final design must be conceived before the picture is begun. The batik artist works intimately with color; if he wishes parts of his design to be light blue, for example, all these parts must be waxed at the same time before any subsequent dyeing. He cannot seperate one part of his design and complete it before moving on to the others as an artist in oils or watercolor may; he must create his design in stages, each of which encompasses the whole picture.

The selection of waxes is important to the quality of the finished batik. Paraffin and beeswax are the two waxes most commonly used in batik and are usually combined in different proportions.


In my collection i have 2 different Batik paintings. These are my Batik paintings collection which are painted on  cotton cloth.









Hindu Mythology Vintage Bazar Postcards

These are 6 different  Hindu Mythology Vintage Bazar Postcards in my collection. 

These Bazar postcards used between the year 1901 to 1910. People during that era used these type postcards very frequently for communication purpose. Due to this reason these postcards are called and popularly known as Bazar cards or Bazar post cards. Several persons particularly many business people printed and used these Bazar cards for their business purpose. Normal people also used these post cards during that era. 

Usually these post cards are came with many images of several themes and all of them cancelled with the stamp of King Edward and these bazar cards used from 1901 to 1910.

Please look into the artistic talent & picture quality of these bazar postcards of 100 years back between 1901 to 1910 years.

This is Srirama Pattabhishekham mythological bazar card in my collection.




This is Rama Sita and Laxmana during Vanavasa period bazar card in my collection.



This is Lord Rama and Sita bazar card in my collection.



This is Lord Shiva and family members bazar card in my collection.


This is Lord Shiva with Ganga maatha bazar card in my collection.


This is Lord Shiva with young Ganesha mythological bazar card in my collection.





Greetings from India picture post cards

These are several Greetings from India picture post cards in my collection. In these Greetings from India picture post cards we observed several heritage monuments of india and also indian woman in their traditional dresses.

These Greetings from India picture post cards published by Heritage Books, Jaipur. I am using them with their permission heritagebooksjpr@gmail.com because these post cards are copyright of Heirtage Books, Jaipur.



 
 

















Greetings from Delhi post cards

These are 2 different Greetings from Delhi post cards in my collection.  In these postcards we observed  several monuments of Delhi.

These Greetings from Delhi post cards are published by Heritage Books, Jaipur. I am using these post cards with the permission of Heritage Books,Jaipur heritagebooksjpr@gmail.com because they are copyright holders of these post cards.


















Saturday 9 March 2013

Kerala Mural Paintings (కేరళ మ్యూరల్ పెయింటింగ్స్)



Kerala mural paintings are the frescoes depicting mythology and legends, which are drawn on the walls of temples and churches in South India, principally in Kerala. Ancient temples, 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 patronage.


Fresco-Secco
The masterpieces of Kerala mural art include: the Shiva Temple in Ettumanoor, the Ramayana murals of Mattancherry Palace and Vadakkumnatha Kshetram. The "Gajendra Moksham" mural painting in the Krishnapuram Palace near Kayamkulam and the mural paintings in the sanctom of Padmanabha temple at  Thiruvananthapuram are very famous.


కేరళ మ్యూరల్ పెయింటింగ్స్ అనేది భారత దేశములో గల వివిధ రకముల చిత్ర రూపములలో ఒక రకమైనది. ఈ పెయింటింగ్ లని దక్షిణ భారత దేశంలోని దేవాలయముల యొక్క గోడల మీద మరియు పై కప్పులమీద ఎక్కువగా చెక్కుతారు. ఈ కేరళ మ్యూరల్ పెయింటింగ్ లది ఒక ప్రత్యేకమైన చిత్ర శైలి. గురువాయూరు లోని కృష్ణుని దేవలయములో మరియు కేరళలోని అనేక ఇతర దేవలయములలో ఈ మ్యూరల్ పెయింటింగ్ లు మనకు కనబడతాయి.  చరిత్ర ప్రకారము ఈ చిత్ర ప్రక్రియ 9 వ శతాబ్ధము నుంచి 12 వ శతాభ్ధము మధ్య కాలములో మొదలు అయింది. ఆ కాలములో రాజుల యొక్క ప్రోత్సాహముతో ఈ చిత్రా కళ ఎంతో ప్రాచుర్యముని పొందింది. ఎట్టమన్నూరు లోని శివాలయములోను, మట్టన్ చెర్రి పేలస్ లోని రామాయణ మ్యూరల్స్, కృష్ణపురం పేలస్ లోని గజేంద్రమోక్షం మ్యూరల్ చిత్రిము, గురువాయూర్ లోని కృష్ణుని దేవాలయములోను, తిరువనంతపురం లోని అనంత పద్మనాభ స్వామి దేవాలయములోను ఇలా కేరళ లో వివిధ ప్రాంతములలో ఉన్న మ్యూరల్ పైంటింగ్స్ కొన్ని ప్రముఖమైన ఉదాహరణలు.

Murals
The murals of Thirunadhikkara Cave Temple (now ceded to Tamil Nadu) and Tiruvanchikulam are considered the oldest relics of  of Kerala’s own style of murals. Fine mural paintings are depicted in temples at Trikodithanam, Ettumanur, Vaikom, Pundarikapuram, Udayanapuram, Triprangode, Guvuvayoor, Kumaranallor, Aymanam,  the Vadakkunathan  temple in Trichur, the Thodeekalam  temple in Kannur and the Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple at Thiruvananthapuram. Other mural sites are in the churches at Edappally, Vechur, Cheppad and Mulanthuruthy, and at palaces such as the Krishnapuram Palace near Kayamkulam and the Padmanabhapuram Palace.
The traditional style mural art form, using natural pigments and vegetable colours, is being revived by a new genre of artists actively involved in researching and teaching mural art at the Sree Sankara Sanskrit College in Kalady and also at a mural art school associated with the Guruvayoor temple. 

The above text courtesy on Kerala Mural Paintings from the Wikipedia.org website  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerala_mural_painting


Recently i got some Kerala Mural Paintings images from Mrs.Lakshmi Subramanian madam of 64arts.in website http://www.64arts.in/. 

Lakshmi Subramanian madam thank you very much for your valuable encouragement to me for sending images of some of the Kerala Mural paintings for sharing them in my Heritage of India blog. 
Below are some of the Frescoes or Wall paintings found in the Temples of Thrissur, Guruwayur and Anantha Padmanabhan of Trivandrum sent by Lakshmi Subramanian madam to me. Lakshmi Subramanian madam thank you very much for your valuable encouragement to me. 


This is Kalyanam kerala mural painting. 



This is Krishna in Vrindavan kerala mural painting.





This is Krishna and Radha kerala mural painting.
































This is Krishna and the gopis kerala mural painting. 



This is Krishna playing the flute kerala mural painting. 

































This is Goddess Lalitha Maatha kerala mural painting. 



This is Mangagalam kerala mural painting. 

































This is Lord Narasimha Swamy kerala mural painting. 



This is Narayana and others kerala mural painting. 

































This is Narayana kerala mural painting.