Context: Mashe Family have organized an exhibition of the Warli paintings in Delhi.
- Jivya Soma Mashe is known as the father of Warli art since he popularized the art form beyond the Sahyadri Mountains in Maharashtra.
About Warli Painting
- Origin: Till the Seventies, the art form remained confined to the representation of joy and happiness of the Warli Tribes’ lives.
- It was traditionally practiced by women.
- Method:
- Layers of cow dung form the canvas. Dried canvas is painted in mud brown to create a background.
- Bamboo-stick paint brushes are used to carve the art lines. Rejuvenation: Jivya Soma Mashe gave a new meaning to the art by capturing the constant cyclical movement of life on the canvas.
- These rudimentary paintings are made using a set of geometric shapes- a circle, a triangle, and a square.
- These shapes are considered to be symbolic of different elements found in nature which are-
- The circle represents the sun and the moon.
- The triangle represents mountains and conical trees.
- The square is a human invention depicting a sacred enclosure or a piece of land.
- The central motif in every ritual painting is a square known as the “chauk” or “chaukat”.
- Theme of Warli Paintings:
- In Warli paintings, the central motif is depicted by scenes that portray hunting, fishing and Farming.
- Festivals and folk dances are also common scenes depicted through Warli art.
- People and animals represented in Warli’s paintings are depicted by two inverse triangles joined at their tips.
- The upper triangle represents the torso and the lower triangle represents the pelvis. This precarious equilibrium is meant to symbolise the balance of the universe.
- Apart from ritualistic paintings, Warli paintings also represent various daily activities village members perform.
- Social Importance of Warli Paintings: Mashe’s Warli art records important events and transmits local stories pictorially. The religious imagery shifted to narratives of tribal lives, values and self-expression.
- This art form has also helped tribals to reflect upon social injustices caused by the systems of power imbalances
About Warli Tribe
- Origin: They are an indigenous community primarily residing in western India’s mountainous and coastal regions, stretching across Maharashtra and Gujarat.
- Culture: They believe in animism and worship nature spirits and ancestors. They use painting to depict their traditional way of life, customs, and traditions.
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Also Read: Indian Folk Paintings, here.
Source: The Hindu