MYSORE TRADITIONAL PAINTINGS

MYSORE TRADITIONAL PAINTINGS

(Jesso Painting, Gold leaf Painting)

A school of painting which started as an offshoot of the Vijayanagara style of painting and drawing, in the royal court of the erstwhile princely state of Mysore is called the tradition; painting of Mysore. It is also referred to as ‘Jesso’ painting and ‘Gold leaf painting’. There are some similarities between this style and the Tanjore traditional paintings because they have the same origin. This school has flourished for more than three centuries, starting during the regime of Raja Wodeyar.(578-1617) He rehabilitated many artists from Vijayanagara at Srirangapattana and Mysore. Many of them belonged to the Kshatriya Raju community. These artists were commissioned to decorate many temples and palaces by Raja Wodeyar and his successors. However, not many artifacts of those times have remained due to political upheavals and the ravages of nature. This art form reached its zenith during the rule of Mummadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar (1799-1868) who was a great connisseur of arts. Most of the paintings that are now available belong to this period. Many of them adore the walls of the Jaganmohan Palace in Mysore. The portraits of the kings, the members of the royal family, important personalities of contemporary India and scenes depicting stories from Indian mythology and epics have provided a vast panorama of themes to the artists. ‘Sri Ramapattabhisheka’, ‘Samudramathana’, Krishna the toddler’ are some perennial themes. Some more examples of this school are found at the Narasimhaswmy temple at Sibi, Tirumalleshvara temple at Hiriyur, Mallikarjuna temple at Mudukutore, Divyalingeshvara temple at Haradanahalli and a Jaina mutt in Shravanabelagola. Many temples in Mysore city like those of Prasanna Krishnaswamy and Varaha have housed these paintings. The Daria Daulatbagh palace in Srirangapattana and the Venkatappa art gallery in Bangalore have harboured some traditional paintings of this school.

‘Sritatvanidhi’ is a huge volume of 1500 pages prepared under the supervision of Sri Mummadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar. “This pictorial digest is a compendium of illustrations of Gods, Goddesses and mythological figures with instructions to painters on an incredible range of topics concerning composition, placement, colour choice and moods. The ragas, seasons, eco happenings, animals and plant world are also effectively depicted in these paintings as co-themes or contexts.” (Circular” National Folklore Support Center, Public program, May 2003) “Abhilashitarthachintamani’, ‘Vishnudharmottarapurana’ and ‘Shivatatva Ratnakara’ are some more texts that provide information about this school.

The background ground canvas for a traditional painting constitutes paper, cloth, wood and the surface of walls. These surfaces are cured by adopting very scientific and meticulous techniques. After the preparation of the surface, an approximation of the paintings in mere outlines is drawn on the surface. The crayons are prepared from the straight twigs of a tamarind tree. The painting process begins with the objects in the background such as sky, hills and rivers. After that animal and human figures requiring more intricate details are painted. After that even more elaborate details such as ornamentation and facial expressions are painted minutely. Gesso work which is the most important feature of the traditional paintings is also initiated at this stage.

Gesso is the art of covering certain parts of the painting with gold foils. These foils are not painted directly on the painting. Requisite areas are first covered with a material called ‘gesso’. Gesso is a paste mixture of white lead powder, gambose and glue. This is used as an embossing material. These areas are later covered with 24K gold leaf and then the painting was given the final touches. After the painting was completed it was allowed to dry thoroughly. Afterwards, a thin paper was placed on top of if and rubbed with a soft smooth stone to enhance the richness in the relief work done with gold foil. In those days artists used vegetable dyes and mineral colors and prepared all the materials required.
The gesso work in Mysore is low in relief and more elaborately done. It is done to enhance the effect of jewelry, architectural details on arches and pillars as also ornamentation. Sundarayyya, Yellappa, Kondaiah, Narasimhaiah are some among the many artists who have enhanced the value of this school. This style is now revived in institutions like Chitrkalaparishat, Bangalore. Y. Subrahmanyaraju was one among the better known artists who represented this school in the 20^th century.