Find the best art form of India that makes our cultural heritage so rich. From Madhubani to Warli to Murals, these paintings capture the different types of Indian paintings.
Indian art forms are a part of our rich culture and heritage. Beautiful bursts of color with vivid patterns and symbolic images capture our culture beautifully on the canvas. The different styles of art forms of India and the unique history behind them make them really special and interesting. This exhaustive list of different types of Indian paintings shows how every part of India added to its rich cultural heritage.
Here are 14 famous art forms of India that show different types of Indian paintings:
1. Madhubani Painting – Bihar
Among the different types of Indian paintings, one of the most celebrated styles of the Indian art form is, Madhubani. This art form originated in the Mithila region of Bihar as a form of wall art. The name of this beautiful art form is derived from a village called ‘Madhubani’ in Bihar. This spectacular art style was unknown to the outside world until the British colonial Archer discovered them in 1934 while inspecting the damage after the massive Bihar earthquake.
These paintings were first painted by artists hailing from Madhubani. King Janakraj, father of goddess Sita wanted the artists to capture moments of Sita’s wedding with Lord Ram. Predominately, the themes revolve around mythology, Hindu Gods, and various royal court scenarios.
You can buy this beautiful Madhubani painting here.
You can buy this beautiful Madhubani painting here.
2. Tanjore Painting – Tamil Nadu
Tanjore or Thanjavur paintings originated in 1600 AD and were vastly encouraged by the Nayakas of Thanjavur in Tamil Nadu. The themes of Tanjore paintings are mostly Hindu Gods, Goddesses, and saints. It’s easy to recognize a Thanjavur painting by its use of gold foil, which glitters and gives the painting a surreal look. Interestingly, the main subject is always painted in the center of the frame. Tanjore Paintings are painted on wooden planks which are colloquially known as ‘Palagai Padam‘.
You can buy this beautiful Tanjore painting here.
You can buy this beautiful Tanjore painting here.
3. Warli Art – Maharashtra
Originated by the Warli tribes from the Western Ghats of India, Warli Art is 2500-year old which makes it one of the oldest art forms in India. These paintings are closely linked with the nature and social rituals of the Warli tribes.
It is mainly the use of circles, triangles, and squares to form numerous shapes and depict daily life activities like hunting, harvest, weddings, festivals, fertility, dance, and more. What sets it apart is the human shape: a circle and two triangles. All the paintings are done on a red ochre or dark background, while the shapes are white in color. Warli Art has gained immense popularity and is painted on home furnishings, décor, and murals.
You can buy this beautiful Warli painting here.
You can buy this beautiful Warli painting here.
4. Kalighat Painting or Bengal Pat – West Bengal
Kalighat Painting or Bengal Pat developed around the 19th century Bengal in the neighborhood of Kali Temple in Calcutta, Bengal. These paintings, on cloth and pattas, at first depicted Gods and Goddesses, but then took a turn towards social reform. The art was characterized by flawless strokes, brushwork, and simple but bold drawings. With the power of art, it raised awareness about social conditions – from depicting rich zamindars drinking wine with women, to priests being shown with ‘unchaste’ women, to police babus being sloppy.
You can buy this beautiful Kalighat painting here.
5. Phad – Rajasthan
Mainly a religious form of scroll painting depicting folk deities Pabuji or Devnarayan, Phad originated in Rajasthan thousands of years ago. It captured the Stories of local deities and heroes painted on 30 or 15 feet-long horizontal cloth scrolls, called phad, in hues of red, yellow, and orange.
From the depiction of battlefields, adventure stories, legendary romances, and the richness of the Indian princely states, it is amazing how the folk artists accommodate multiple stories in a single composition, yet maintain the aesthetics of artistic expression.
You can buy this beautiful Rajasthan Phad painting here.
You can buy this beautiful Rajasthan Phad painting here.
6. Pattachitra Painting – Orissa
Hailing from Orissa, Pattachitra folk painting is one of the earliest forms of art that originated during the 8th century. As the name suggests, ‘Patta’ means ‘clothing’ and ‘chitra’ stands for paintings, this art form encompasses the pictures painted on a cloth base. Inspired by the Jagannath and Vaishnava cult, the depictions of Pattachitra art can be seen in the famous Konark Temple in Orissa.
You can buy this beautiful Pattachitra painting here.
7. Mughal Painting – Mughal Era
As the name suggests, the Mughal Paintings evolved during the Mughal Era. This painting style reflects a synthesis of Indian, Persian, and Islamic art styles. The art form captured the vast themes around battles, receptions, court scenes, hunting scenes, legendary stories, portraits, and wildlife. Victoria and Albert Museums in London have huge collections of Mughal paintings.
You can buy this beautiful Mughal painting here.
8. Rajput Painting – Rajputana
Flourishing in the 18th century in the royal courts of Rajputana, Rajput art forms captured the scenes from Ramayana and Mahabharata. The colors used for these paintings were extracted from gold, silver, precious stones, and plant sources. This wasn’t an easy task and this lengthy process would sometimes even take weeks.
You can buy this beautiful Rajput painting here.
9. Kalamkari Painting – Andhra Pradesh
Meaning “pen-art”, Kalamkari paintings are either hand-painted or block-printed on cotton fabric. Even though it was first developed at Machilipatnam in Andhra Pradesh, it soon gained popularity among other states.
As far as the popular belief goes, in the olden days, artisans, musicians, and singers known as chitrakattis would travel from village to village. They would narrate tales of Hindu mythology. With changing times, they even started illustrating these stories on canvas and thus Kalamkari was born.
You can buy this beautiful Kalamkari painting here.
10. Gond Painting – Madhya Pradesh
Indian art form from Madhya Pradesh, Gond paintings are characterized mostly by animals and birds. These vibrant paintings created with a series of intricately arranged dots and dashes were developed by the Gondi tribe of central India.
Traditionally, colors were derived from natural sources like cow dung, plant sap, charcoal, colored soil, mud, flowers, leaves, etc. Now, Gond artists use commercial water-based colors to paint on paper and canvas.
You can buy this beautiful Gond painting here.
You can buy this beautiful Gond painting here.
You can buy this beautiful Gond painting here.
11. Kerala Mural
Being one of the vibrant forms of art, Kerala mural paintings are one of the world’s most famous frescos, that have deep spiritual roots depicting themes of Hindu mythology, epics, and the classic frolics of Krishna as well as the mystic forms of Siva and Shakti.
This traditional art style dates to the 7th and 8th centuries AD. Characterized by bold strokes, and vivid colors, Kerala mural paintings are mainly captured through Ochre-red, yellow-ochre, bluish-green, white, and pure colors.
You can buy this beautiful Kerala Mural painting here.
You can buy this beautiful Kerala Mural painting here.
12. Picchwai
The art of Picchwai originated as wall hangings behind the main deity in Krishna temples in Nathdwara. Initially, the art painting narrated stories related to Lord Krishna. But, with commercialization, secular themes have also been incorporated into the Picchwai style of painting.
You can buy this beautiful Picchwai painting here.
You can buy this beautiful Picchwai painting here.
13. Cheriyal Scrolls
With the scrolls around 40–45 feet in length and themes centered on Indian mythology and folk traditions, Cheriyal Scrolls has been practiced by the Nakashi family through generations. These types of paintings are made with bright hues, with red as a dominating background. The colors are extracted from natural sources by the artists, and the brushes are made with squirrel hair.
You can buy this beautiful Cheriyal painting here.
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We hope this list of art forms of India would have helped you understand the different types of Indian paintings, which make our culture so rich and famous!