These Madhubani paintings are going up all over Patna, Bihar. The project is aimed at beautifying the walls in the hopes that people don’t spit or urinate out in the open, on the walls. “Vulnerable points have been selected for the painting. However, work will continue on most of the walls. ” according to Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC) deputy commissioner Vishal Anand.
Before I left the United States, the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco had an exhibit on Madhubani paintings. It was fun to discover these all over the town of Patna.
A painting in the Asian Art Museum Exhibit
Madhubani paintings originated in the Mithila region of Bihar. Some of the initial references to the Madhubani painting can be found in the Hindu epic Ramayana when King Janaka, Sita’s father, asks his painters to create Madhubani paintings for his daughter’s wedding. The knowledge was passed down from generation to generation and the paintings began to adorn the houses of the region. The women of the village practiced these paintings on the walls of their respective home. Their paintings often illustrated their thoughts, hopes, and dreams.
Over time, Madhubani paintings became a part of festivities and special events like weddings. Slowly, this art attracted collectors as many contemporary Indian artists took the art onto the global stage. The traditional base of plastered mud walls was soon replaced by handmade paper, cloth, and canvas. Since the paintings have been confined to a limited geographical range, the themes, as well as the style, are more or less, the same.
The colors used in Madhubani paintings are usually derived from plants and other natural sources. These colors are often bright and pigments like lampblack and ochre are used to create black and brown respectively. Instead of contemporary brushes, objects like twigs, matchsticks, and even fingers are used to create the paintings.
Women doing the wall paintings in Patna.
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