Miniature paintings in India

 

The handcrafted, beautiful paintings are known as miniatures. Although these paintings are small, they are vivid and colorful. The best aspect of these paintings is the intricate and delicate brushwork that gives them their unique identity. Hand-made colors are used to create miniatures. The most common sources are pure gold, silver, minerals, plants, precious stones, indigo, and conch shells.

Miniature Paintings in India – Historical Background

• The Latin word “Minimum,” which means red lead paint, is the root of the English word “miniature.”
• The Renaissance period saw the use of this painting in illuminated manuscripts. The word minimum, which would imply that they were small in size, is frequently confused with it.
• These miniature paintings have a long history on the Indian subcontinent, and numerous schools with different perspectives and compositions have emerged.
• In the Western Himalayas, Indian miniature paintings first emerged around the 17th century.
• These works were greatly influenced by the mural paintings that appeared in the second half of the 18th century.
• Throughout the Mughal era, the miniature painting genre received financial support from the Deccan Muslim and Malwa kings as well as the Hindu Rajas of Rajasthan.
• The Mughals introduced Persian tradition into Indian miniature paintings.

Miniature Paintings in India – Features

• Paintings made by hand that have a nice appearance and are vibrant despite their small size are known as miniatures.
• The best aspect of these paintings is the intricate and delicate brushwork that gives each one its unique style.
• Hand-mixed paint colors are used to decorate miniatures. The most frequent sources are pure gold, silver, minerals, plants, precious stones, indigo, and conch shells.
• Making miniature paintings requires a number of conditions to be satisfied.
• The size of the painting should not exceed 25 square inches.
• The subject of the painting should be depicted at a scale that is no greater than 1/6th of its actual size.
• The majority of Indian miniature paintings show the human figurine in a side profile.
• There are common features of bulging eyes, a sharp nose, and a thin waist.
• Characters in Rajasthani miniatures have dark skin tones, whereas, in Mughal paintings, they are frequently paler.
• Furthermore, blue is the color of celestial beings like Lord Krishna.
• The long-haired female figurines almost always have black eyes and hair.
• The majority of men dress traditionally and cover their heads with turbans.

Early Miniature

• Books or albums, they were frequently painted on ephemeral materials like paper, palm leaves, and fabric.
• Between the eighth and the twelfth centuries, the art of miniature painting developed almost as a response to the enormous wall paintings.
• Both the eastern and western regions of the nation have examples of this type of painting.
• There are two renowned institutions of higher learning.
  • Pala School of Art
  • Apabhramsa School of Art

Pala School of Art

• This school flourished between the years of 750 and 1150 AD.
• The majority of these paintings, which were discovered as a component of manuscripts, were created on vellum paper or palm leaf.
• Only banana or coconut tree leaves were permitted because Buddhist monks are taught to practice nonviolence toward all living things.
• In these paintings, the background imagery is characterized by sinuous lines and soft tones.
• In contrast to the rarity of group paintings, the paintings frequently feature lonesome single characters.
• Many kings patronized them because of their straightforward compositions, which they used to promote Buddhism.
• The Vajrayana school of Buddhism also made use of and purchased these paintings.

Apabhramsa School of Art

• Gujarat and the Rajasthani Mewar region are the origins of this school.
• It dominated the art scene in western India from the 11th to the 15th centuries.
• The Vaishnava School later adopted the Jain religion as the most prominent motif in these paintings.
• They incorporated secular love and the Gita Govinda concept into these works of art, which had previously been dominated by Jain imagery.
• In the early Jain era, the paintings were created on palm leaves; however, in later times, they were created on paper.
• The paintings had no particular style despite being created as book illustrations; rather, they were mural paintings on a smaller scale.
• The symbolic meaning was attached to the primary colors used in the paintings, which were primarily red, yellow, and ochre. In the end, they used colors that were vivid and golden.

Miniature Paintings – Deccan

• Flat color applications were used, with black used to outline the clothing and people.
• The faces have a detached appearance because they are seen at a three-quarter angle.
• There are plenty of trees, rocks, and other designs in the landscapes, but none of them try to mimic the subject’s natural appearance.

Miniature Paintings – Delhi sultanate

• In these paintings, the artists tried to incorporate elements of Indian tradition with ancestoral Persian motifs.
• The Nimatnama (a book) written during the rule of Nasir Shah, who oversaw Mandu, is one of the best examples from this era. They preferred pictorial manuscripts.
• In addition, many of the Sultanate-controlled districts between Delhi and Jaunpur practiced a style at the time known as the Lodi Khuladar.

Miniature Paintings – Mughal Era

• Mughal paintings have a unique style because they were influenced by Persian antecedents.
• Changes were made to the shapes, motifs, and color scheme. The focus shifted from emulating the god to exalting and illuminating the ruler’s life.
• Paintings of hunting scenes, historical incidents, and other court-related subjects were the main focus of the Mughal era.
• The Mughal artwork combined the grandeur of a vast empire with the realistic style of Persia to create some exquisitely illustrated folios.
• These paintings have been described as unique because of the obvious bright colors used in them.
• The line drawings were supposed to be the primary concern of the painters.
• Religious art was one of the many diverse subjects that the Mughals were known for.
• The illustrations in paintings are thought to be among the most distinctive in the world, despite the fact that they only produced miniature paintings.

Miniature Paintings – Rajput style

• The most influential eras were the 17th and 18th centuries.
• The tiny painting style, which was initially based on mural and fresco forms, became more common in the 20th century.
• Usually, it has a spiritual or devotional bent.
• The lotus, peacock, and swan are among the typical Hindu symbols used in it.

Miniature Paintings – South India

• Throughout the early medieval period, the South Indian states had a well-established tradition of producing miniature paintings.
• These schools were different from those in northern India because of the climate.
• They concentrated their efforts and there is a lot of gold in these paintings.
• It takes much longer to draw celestial beings than it does to paint a ruler.
• Some of the most well-known schools are listed below:
  • Tanjore painting
  • Mysore painting

Conclusion

Paintings in miniature scale are exquisitely crafted works of art. Despite being small, these paintings are vibrant and colorful. The best aspect of these paintings is the intricate and delicate brushwork that gives them their unique identity. Hand-made colors are used for miniatures. The most typical sources include minerals, plants, precious stones, indigo, conch shells, pure gold, pure silver, and pure metals. A prominent motif in Indian miniature paintings is the raga. Numerous schools of miniature painting existed in the nation, including Deccan, Rajput, and Mughal schools.