Keeping a royal art alive

Dhanyata M Poovaiah traces the origins of traditional Mysore paintings, their 20th-century revival, and the challenges of keeping the art form relevant and popular today.

In Pablo Picasso’s words, “Painting is just another way of keeping a diary.” Indeed, the traditional Mysore paintings, a GI tagged art form that traces its roots to the Vijayanagara empire, mirrors much of Karnataka’s regional history. 

After the fall of the Vijayanagara empire in 1565, the chitrakars (artists) of the kingdom migrated to Srirangapatna-Mysore (Mysuru), Tanjore (Thanjavur) and Surpur; thereby giving rise to the classical Mysore, Tanjore and Surpur schools of painting, respectively. The mural paintings in the Virupaksha Temple in Hampi and the Veerabhadra Temple in Lepakshi (Andhra Pradesh) reflect the Vijayanagara style while the murals at Mathada Basadi in Shravanabelagola represent the early phase of Mysore style.

“Each painting narrates a story. It helps preserve and popularise the region’s culture. In the present times, it helps an individual connect to their roots,” says Tejas S J, founder of GiTAGGED that deals with GI tagged products.

The Mysore style of painting, with its fine lines, intricate detailing, subtle natural colours and low relief work, over which gold foil is applied, is closer to the original Vijayanagara style of painting. It evolved under the patronage of the Mysore Wadiyars, Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan. While the Jaganmohan Palace in Mysuru has an extensive collection of such paintings, they can also be seen at the Daria Daulat Bagh Palace in Srirangapatna and the Narasimha Swamy Temple at Seebi in Tumakuru. 

Mysore paintings flourished in the early to mid-19th century, particularly during the reign of Krishnaraja Wadiyar III, who sought to highlight the kingdom’s richness through art. His Sritattvanidhi, a treatise on iconography, contains a vast collection of illustrations of various deities and mythological figures in the Mysore style of painting and served as a guide for a long time.

“Mysore paintings show the culture that prevailed during the Vijayanagara and Wadiyar periods. They reflect the clothing, saree draping style and jewellery of those times. Portraits, king’s court, royal and religious processions were common themes, pointing to the life of the royals and commoners,” says Neela Panch, former faculty of Mysore painting at Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath.

While mainly portraying Hindu deities, Mysore paintings also have Islamic influence evident in its secular themes, Persian-style designs and portraiture. Its cataloguing practices and Western-style landscapes also point to colonial influence. “Chandeliers, candles and European-style furniture show the integration of European elements into traditional Mysore paintings,” says Neela.

However, the art form gradually declined due to the loss of royal patronage after British expansion and art patrons shifting toward British realism. The high cost of gold foil and organic pigments used in the painting forced many artists to abandon the style.

The spread of chromolithography leading to mass production of affordable colourful images of deities, further reduced the demand for hand-painted images. 

Era of revival

In the mid-20th century, Mysore paintings witnessed a revival, largely attributed to the efforts of M S Nanjunda Rao and M Arya Murthy, who founded the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath. They collected a number of old and dilapidated Mysore paintings from across the state and gave a new lease of life to them. Revival efforts were further pushed by Y Subramanya Raju.

Artists associated with the royal family such as M Ramanarasaiah, in association with the Jaganmohan Palace Trust, renewed interest in Mysore paintings by mentoring and training younger generations in the traditional techniques.

“One can learn the basics of Mysore painting in a few days but mastering it will take a couple of years, as every new painting presents its own challenges depending on the theme, setting and the landscape,” says artist Asha Prasad, a student of Ramanarasaiah, who takes offline and online classes for students of all age groups.

Before beginning a new work, artists research the theme, study the avatars of the deity, the pose, gestures and unique characteristic elements associated with it. Reference books and now, the internet are used for this purpose, Asha explains.

Modern touch

A unique aspect of Mysore painting is its gesso work, used to create low relief and embossing. “The gesso paste is a mixture of zinc oxide or white lead powder with gamboge, a yellow resin obtained from Garcinia trees, and Arabic gum, a natural resin used as a binder for watercolours and an adhesive for delicate gold foils. Minute details of the deities’ jewellery and weapons, and pillars and arches in the background are created using this paste. This is then embellished with a 22K or 24K gold leaf, creating a 3D effect. Gamboge accentuates the golden radiance,” says Raghavendra B B, an acclaimed artist from Divine Mysore Arts. 

Raghavendra credits media and social networking platforms with popularising Mysore paintings, and connecting customers and artists. “Earlier, sales were largely limited to exhibitions; now, we receive regular orders,” he adds.

“While the current focus is mainly on antique-style depictions of deities, there is considerable scope to expand themes. Global and regional historical events can be portrayed. I draw inspiration from sculptures, temple art, tribal art, comics and nature to develop new designs and elements,” Raghavendra says, emphasising the need to modernise and adopt new themes to keep the art form relevant.

Right pricing

According to him, the perceived lucrativeness has led some inexperienced artists, who trace images instead of drawing freehand, to charge exorbitantly. Additionally, due to high prices, duplicates where digital copies are painted over, embossed and covered with gold foil, are flooding the market and being sold as originals. This, ultimately, affects the authenticity of the art form and restricts access of the authentic ones to the wealthy only.

“Right marketing is essential to raise awareness about original works,” he says, adding that right pricing is the key to the increasing demand for Mysore paintings.

All the artists agree that the government should take a more proactive role in promoting and preserving traditional art forms.

Acclaimed artist Raghavendra B B creates a traditional Mysore painting. Photo: Divine Mysore Arts

Artist Asha Prasad explains features of Mysore paintings to a group of enthusiasts. Photo: Special arrangement

Acclaimed artist Raghavendra B B creates a traditional Mysore painting. Photo: Divine Mysore Arts

A traditional Mysore painting.