A friend from school writes about
decorating the home with colors and art. Her posts and the pins in Pinterest
made me realize that happiness and wisdom walks into your haven only if you
allow them. The house is mine and so are its elements. The walls, the cabinets,
the mirror or the cupboards—each should tell a story of the family and me. And
so, the interest of decorating the house is mounting up with each passing day as
well as the slow realization of too many things that I want the walls in my
home to have. Photographs, paintings, wall hangings, creative book shelves,
etc.
Paintings, both traditional and modern, are
unique. As if they speak something new every time you look at them. Sadly, traditional art forms from the
different corners of the country are losing its value as they get overshadowed
by digital art and other new forms. Traditional art forms are India’s pride and
should continue to remain so. Following is a small description of one such art form,
Pattachitra.
Pattachitra, like many other traditional art
forms (Madhubani art, Terracotta art of Bishnupur and similar others) is a
living art form hailing from Orissa. A very old type of art, Pattachitra or
Painting on Patta is primarily wall or manuscript paintings or palm leaf
etching on cloth (cotton as well as silk). The artisans who still practice this
living art form are found in and around Puri, the home of Shri Jagannath as
well as in the village of Raghurajpur. The artisans from Raghurajpur dwell in a
dedicated area known as Chitrakar Sahe.
The paintings on the cloth are primarily
based on Hindu mythology, particularly inspired by the Vaishnava cult,
emergence and establishment of Shri Jagannath, Krishna Leela and stories from
the Hindu mythological epic, Ramayana. These paintings have three perspective:
(a) the temple art or art of Jagannath Temple (b) less significant is the court
art or art of the Jagannath Temple (c) generalized nature in the art of the
society as opposed to temple art.
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| Image: jayajagannath.blogspot.com |
The process of creating a Pattachitra is no
easy work. Hard work, hours of toil and creativity, as they are put in,
produces the best of art works that makes everyone gaze at them with awe and
not fail to praise them for their work.
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| Image: |
However, not all good things get what they
deserve. The art of such magnificent traditional forms of mythological art is gradually
getting lost. The artists who put in hours of labor to produce such
masterpieces are not paid well or appreciated for their work properly. They
sell their work at a minimal price to the middle-men who in turn sell them at a
much higher price in international as well as domestic markets.
The need now is to create a buzz about them
and help them secure their art and skill through informed marketing and
well-deserved recognition. Applauds to #DoRight
for taking up the initiative of bringing out the issue into public notice. By
writing this post, I am making a humble attempt to spread the word of reviving
the forms of traditional art and help them earn well-deserved appreciation.
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| Image: blog.artsya.com |
Please watch the video below to know more
and initiate a contribution.
Sources:
