A Classic Traditional Painting
Wall Paintings Patachitra for home decor, An annual ritual in the
famous Jagannath Temple of Puri, a beach town in the State of
Orissa, has given rise to one of Indias most treasured folk art from
India, the Patachitra. The origin of the ancient India art Patachitra
paintings can be traced back to the 8th century AD and it is
considered as one of the earliest forms of indigenous paintings. Each
year, the painted wooden images of Jagannath, Balabhadra,and Shubhadra
in the Jagannath temple of Puri are ritually given the holy bath.
This cleansing leads to the discoloration of the images. Hence, they
are removed from the garbha griha (the Seat in the Temple) for
repainting. During this period, the temple images are substituted with
three paintings, depicting the holy trio, on specially treated
clothes or Patas prepared by the temple painter. Thus the name
Patachitra (Sanskrit Pata = cloth, Chitra = painting). Organic colors
are used in the Patachitras.
The leaves of plants, flower petals, fruits (like mangoes), ground
rocks and even the urine of domesticated animals
contribute to the production of a variety of shades and hues. The
predominant gem like colors that are used are vermilion red derived
from cinnabar, brick red from red ochre, yellow from orpiment, blue
from indigo, green from green leaves, white from conch shell and black
from lamp black. Once, the colors are extracted they are combined with
gum resin and then used in painting. The brushes used to apply the
paint are prepared from plant fibers or animal hair. The depiction of
images in a Patachitra is not always uniform.
