Warli Paintings

30 Dec 2023

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.

Warli Paintings

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. 


Also Read:
Indian Folk Paintings, here.

Source: The Hindu

 

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UDAAN PRELIMS WALLAH
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