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Paintings » Indian Paintings » Pahari School Of Art Paintings » Kangra Style Paintings
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The district of Kangra is quite adept at various crafts and arts. The Kangra school of paintings is an integral part of art literature; they are miniature paintings made with vegetable dyes worthily based on love themes of Radha and Krishna. One can find influence of this style of paintings in other handicrafts too. The art of embroidery is based on it and covers handkerchiefs, scarves, shawls, kurtas etc. The rugs, carpets and blankets too bear beautiful and colorful designs. Even the ponies of the area wear multicolored carpet saddles. The other school of painting that survive in the district is the Gompa school. At one time, it was confined only to the monasteries, today you can find many articles of clothing and household materials based on these painting styles. One part of it is completely Buddhist and as original in form as before. Another part of this painting style has combined the Kangra school and what we get to see is a mixture or combination of the two. The typical and varied dressing styles of the people of Kangra can be seen in the dolls that can be seen in the markets. The dolls are life like and beautiful and the traditional costumes are exquisite. The most common tribe to be found here is the Gaddi tribe. These people are simple and content. They are Hindus and are semi nomadic who lead a hard and adventurous life.
The coming of painters from the Mughal court in the second quarter of the 18th century led to a complete transformation of the existing Basholi style of paintings and the birth of Guler-Kangra style of paintings. This late Pahari style of paintings first appeared in Guler and then in Kangra. Raja Goverdhan Singh (1744-1773 AD) of Guler was an early patron of this art form. The Kangra paintings reached their maturity during the reign of Maharaja Sansar Chand (1775-1823 AD). These paintings are marked by their liquid grace and delicacy. Fattu, Parkhu and Khushala were important painters of the Kangra style. Many themes like the Bhagwata Purana, Gita Govinda and the Sat Sai of Nala-Damayanti were portrayed in these paintings. Another subject of the Kangra paintings was the “Twelve Months”, in which the artists tried to bring out the effect of seasons round the year on the emotions of human beings.
The Kangra style is by far the most poetic and lyrical of Indian styles, says art historian J. C. Harle. His favourite subject here is "the idealization of woman, in flowing sari, head half-covered with a shawl, demure but stately, passionate and shy". In many cases the works of the Kangra School are accompanied by the texts inscribed in the Nagari characters. The Kangra style became well entrenched in the Hills and many offshoots emerged in the regions like Kullu, Nurpur, Chamba and Mandi. The Bhuri Singh Museum in Chamba is best known for its exquisite collection of the Pahari miniatures. This genre of painting continued till late in the 19th century, after which it declined in its importance. |
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