Their paintings depicting different professions and costumes were also popular with the tourists. The Bengali Renaissance or simply Bengal Renaissance, was a cultural, social, intellectual and artistic movement in Bengal region in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent during the period of the British Indian Empire, from the 19th century to the early 20th century dominated by Bengali Hindu community. At present, apart from the Sanskrit theatre, the influence of the European theatre and the indigenous folk culture can also be seen in the theatre art of Bangladesh. Due to this exceptional combination, it gained steady acknowledgment. In the 19th century, the only school of painting that was flourishing in Bengal was the traditional art of scroll paintings that was popular in the rural areas. Specialties of Kalighat Paintings include clarity of motifs, seamless brushwork, and elaborate use of earthy-Indian hues. They started creating new forms of art and the Kalighat painting was born. The Kalighat School was an agreeable and unique blend of two different styles of painting—the Oriental and the Occidental—and steadily gained popularity. It is one of the famous Hindu temples where … The region has been a historical melting point, blending indigenous traditions with cosmopolitan influences from pan-Indian subcontinental empires. These artists, called patuas or ‘painters on cloth’. The Oriental school of Kalighat paintings predominantly features religious figureheads such as Rama, Sita, Durga, Lakshmi, etc. Even contemporary events like crime were the subject of many paintings. Pattachitra artform is known for its intricate details as well as mythological narratives and folktales inscribed in it. Initially sold as items of souvenir taken by the visitors to the Kali temple, the paintings over a period of time developed as a distinct school of Indian painting. While images of Hindu deities dominated the artist’s impressions, Islamic themes featuring prophets, angels and taziyas (tomb models) and other secular depictions were set … They depicted conventional images of gods and goddesses and scenes from epics like Tulsidas’ Rama Charita Manas. From the depiction of Hindu gods, god, and other mythological characters, the Kalighat paintings developed to reflect a variety of themes. These style of paintings depicted contemporary society usually under satirical scrutiny. Kalighat Painting. They set up institutions that imparted a European style of academic training to Indian artists. These paintings were done on cloth or patas. Pattachitra is one of the ancient artworks of Odisha, originally created for ritual use and as souvenirs for pilgrims to Puri, as well as other temples in Odisha. In the nineteenth century, the only school of painting that was flourishing in Bengal was the traditional art of scroll paintings that was popular in the rural areas. Kalighat temple was considered the main centre around which the traditional artists called ‘the pataus’ or ‘painters of cloth’ concentrated. The entire family of Mukul Dey had artistic talents, the brother Manishi Dey was a well-known painter, and his two sisters, Annapura and Rani, were accomplished in arts and crafts as well. Kalighat School was a unique and delightful Blend of the Oriental and the Occidental styles of painting. It is the former capital of India and the current capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, and occasionally called the "Cultural capital of India". Due to this, there are two types of Kalighatpaintings that one can witness, Oriental and Occidental. The alternate discipline of Kalighat painting, known as the “Occidental school,” included pieces that depicted ordinary people engaging in everyday life or captured the changes taking place in Kolkata at the time. Kalighat’s paintings were developed in the 19th century around the Kali temple, Kalighat, in Calcutta. The other mo… He was honoured with the State award of Padma Bhushan in 1955. Kalighat Paintings were first painted on the mill-made paper and using the natural and homemade dyes. He was also the first major exponent of Swadeshi values in Indian art, thereby founding the influential Bengal school of art, which led to the development of modern Indian painting. The artistes were villagers who travelled from place to place with their scroll paintings and sang the scenes from the epics depicted in the paintings during village gatherings and festivals. David McCutchion was an English-born academic, and a pioneer in a number of original strands of scholarship in Indian studies before his early death at age 41. Bengal was considered to be the richest part of Islamic medieval India and during the era of the Bengal Sultanate it was described to be a world major trading nation, while during Mughal times, having triggered the proto-industrialization, its economy was worth 12% of global GDP. Kalighat painting. The Indian state of West Bengal has a rich cultural and artistic heritage. K.G. Kalighat-style paintings by Jamini Roy. Religious themes (Oriental art) were the primary subject matter but the contemporary society (Occidental art) – especially the babu culture also provided a great deal of visual material to the artists. Mukul Chandra Dey was one of five children of Purnashashi Devi and Kula Chandra Dey. Their paintings depicting different professions and costumes were also popular with tourists. Only natural dyes are used in Kalamkari, which involves twenty-three steps. Following his appointment to the painting department in 1951, he proceeded to define the school's character by imbuing it with the vision of his former teacher Binode Bihari Mukherjee, a pioneer of modern art in India.. I chose Kalighat paintings to depict my journey. Manishi Dey was an Indian painter of the Bengal School of Art. The culture of Bengal defines the cultural heritage of the Bengali people native to eastern regions of the Indian subcontinent, mainly what is today Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura and Assam's Barak Valley, where the Bengali language is the official and primary language. The main distinguishing facet of the Kalighat paintings is the motifs used in them. The paintings of Kalighat have a chequered history and reflect a delightful blend of the traditional oriental art with Indian occidental influences. The Calcutta School of Art was one such school and attracted traditional artists–the patuas—to the city. Indian painting has a very long tradition and history in Indian art, though because of the climatic conditions very few early examples survive. The Kalighat painters were very much outsiders, and their popular art style was one of the first instances where anyone called visual attention to the deteriorating effects of British presence on traditional Indian culture. Another theme depicted, dear to the Bengali ethos, was that of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and his disciples. They depicted conventional images of gods and goddesses and scenes from epics like Tulsidas’ Rama charita manas. But the Kalighat artists did not restrict themselves to religious themes. 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