Kangra painting are well known pictorial art named after Kangra State, a former princely state of Himachal Pradesh which patronised the art. This art form had remained in vogue in the foothills of western Himalayas and are admired throughout the world. Kangra paintings have no specific dimension. These are painted in small sizes as well as in big sizes on walls, clothes or papers.
The central theme of Kangra Paintings is love and its sentiments are expressed in lyrical style full of rhythm, grace and beauty. The recurring theme of Kangra Paintings, whether it portrays one of six seasons or modes of music, Krishna & Radha or Shiva and Parvati is the love of men for women and of women for men. In Kangra Paintings the beauty of women comes first and all else is secondary.
One of the favourite themes is the Rasikapriya of the poet Keshav Das. It derives inspiration from Krishna cult. The Nayak and Nayika in the Rasikapriya are Krishna and Radha, the ideal lovers, symbol of God and Soul. The romances of Heer Ranjha and Sohni Mahiwal are other favourite themes of the Kangra Paintings. The paintings based on Geet Govinda, Mahabharata can also be seen.
Paper manufactured out of vegetal fibres has been used as carrier for miniature paintings. The most popular fibres used for this purpose are derived from bamboo, flax, jute, linen, and some varieties of grass which are easily available locally.
The Kangra painters made use of pure colours, like yellow, red and blue and these have retained their brilliance, even after two hundred years. The uniqueness of Kangra Paintings lies in the unique use of lines and fresh colours extracted locally from stones, vegetables and natural sources like metals, minerals and orches.
The colour pigments are used in paintings after mixing them with binding medium with gum made from secretions of various kinds of trees or animal glue. The artists are very careful in the selection of the brushes which they usually make themselves. The traditional brushes are made of squirrel hair.
The execution of a painting is completed in as many as eight stages. The first step for the painting of a picture is to sketch the subject with charred wood on the carrier. In the second stage improvement upon the first sketch is done in sanguine. In the third stage it is drawn with the brush in black colour.
All the motifs are redrawn over the drawing which is visible under the translucent white ground and other details are added to the drawing in the fourth stage. The fifth stage of the execution of a painting involves the application of all colours.
After the first coat of colour is dry, the painting is burnished from the back. In the next stage all the colour pigments are laid again in the same order as was done at stage five. After the completion of the second coat, the pigments are again burnished from the back as usual.
At the seventh stage, the work of khulai (outlining, adding of details, some shading and so forth) is done. This process starts to infuse life in the figures which now appear more prominent as compared to those seen in the former stage of the work where the details were only faintly visible.
The last work to be done in a painting is known as moti-mahavar (pearls and henna). The white used for indicating pearls is a mixed pigment. Mahavar (that is, red lac) wash is given at the lips, fingers, toes and around the feet to complete the makeup of the figure.
Kangra paintings saw a distinctive focus on the feminine beauty and this is clearly seen in their depiction of women in the paintings. The rendering of expression of different moods of the women is incomparable and magnificent and which is not seen in many of the painting styles of different regions.
GI Tag Registration Date : 31 March 2014
GI Tag Number : 381 & 413
Certificate Number : 214
Geographical Area : Himachal Pradesh
Special Cover Release Date : 02 September 2021
Cancellation : Dharamsala 176 215
Type : GI Tag Cover
Cover Identification Number : HP/06/2021
This cover has an embossed image of Kangra Paintings. It also has an QR Code on the backside of the cover.
Enlarged View of Illustration
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