Indian miniature painting is one of the world’s most impressive artistic disciplines. As the name suggests, it involves painting images onto implausibly tiny canvases, often no larger than a few centimetres in width and height. If you’ve never seen a miniature painting before, you’ll be stunned by the level of detail involved. Individual leaves on trees and hairs on human heads are clearly defined on paintings no larger than train tickets.
Although the style was “invented” between the 11th and 12th centuries, when artists illustrated religious palm leaf manuscripts with miniature paintings, it wasn’t until the rise of the Mughal Empire (16th-19th century) that the miniature style really came to the fore. Akbar the Great, Mughal Emperor from 1542 to 1605, brought together more than 100 artists to form the Mughal School of Miniature Painting, responsible for many of India’s greatest miniature masterpieces.
Miniature painting is still alive and well throughout much of India today, particularly in Rajasthan, where many miniature painting schools (often combined with gift shops for tourists) continue to operate. Anyone considering a life as a miniature painter should think carefully however. Training starts at a young age, for as middle age looms, the 20-20 vision and steady hand necessary, start to deteriorate. It takes years of practise, dedication to a strict technique and, perhaps worst of all, abstinence from all stimulants, including caffeine!
1. Radha Krishna with Gopini Holding Ektara (height 35cm) [2009]
Image: Dolls of India
2. Peacock on Gold (height 1.4cm) [Modern]
Image: Indianminiatures.com
3. Indra on Airavata (height 18cm) [Modern]
Image: Jnanam.net
4. Ragamala Scene of Acrobats (height 32cm) [18th-19th century]
Image: Hurst Gallery
5. Portrait of Raja Brajraj (height 16cm) [Kangra, 1781]
Image: Hurst Gallery
6. Siva and Parvati on a Terrace [18th century]
Image: The Guardian
7. Rajasthani Lady [Modern]
Image: Jodhpur Collections
8. Ten Gurus [circa 1882]
Image: The Government Museum and Art Gallery Chandigarh
9. Lady With a Lotus [18th century]
Image: The Government Museum and Art Gallery Chandigarh
10. Guru Gobind Singh Ji [circa 1815]
Image: The Government Museum and Art Gallery Chandigarh
11. Musician Entertaining a Lady [circa 1750]
Image: The Government Museum and Art Gallery Chandigarh
12. Radha and Krishna in Discussion [circa 1730]
Image: The Government Museum and Art Gallery Chandigarh
13. Kakhuba Ragini [18th century]
Image: Indianminiaturepaintings.co.uk
14. Indian Gypsies [2002]
Image: Davidson Galleries
15. Ragamala [circa 1650]
Image: Indianminiaturepaintings.co.uk
16. Darbar of Gods and Mortals [19th century]
Image: Hurst Gallery
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May 11th, 2010 at 8:02 am
Tom, the colours in the Ten Gurus image are inverted. One click correction in Photoshop, fortunately.
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