Prehistory
The earliest traces of artistic expression in this vast Asian country can be found in the caves of Bhimbetka in Madhya Pradesh. The oldest petroglyphs date back to around 8000 B.C. Executed with mostly red and white mineral pigments, they depict animals and humans in scenes of dance, hunting, combat and daily activities such as honey harvesting. Peacocks, tigers, bison, lions and elephants appear on the rock faces.
In the Indus Valley, on the border between India and Pakistan, the Harappean civilization developed around 3300 BC. After centuries of probably peaceful flourishing, it fell into oblivion until the excavations undertaken at the end of the 19th century. These campaigns revealed the key role played by the art of pottery in its expansion, particularly in the Ganges Valley. The earliest Indian sculptures were produced in terracotta and bronze between 2500 and 1800 B.C. Modest dancing human figures and animals are kept at the National Museum in New Delhi.
Ancient times
The ancient Greeks and Romans were the first to be fascinated by Indian art. Perhaps because sculpture occupies a place of the first order in India. Centuries before our era, the first monumental creations were carved in stone. From the5th century onwards, the lost-wax bronze casting technique, using a mold, was adopted. High sculptures honored divinities such as Shiva and Buddha. Jainism and Islam influenced the creation of these stone divinities in connection with sacred sites.
Temple walls were adorned with narrative reliefs. Under the reign of Narashimavarman I, in the 7th century, bas-reliefs covered the walls of temples and caves, still visible today in the Chennai region. On the Mahabalipuram site, the rock carvings of the Mahabalipuram Caves are a perfect illustration of Hindu folk art. In the sanctuary dedicated to Shiva, a high relief shows the deity in family, or in Somaskanda, i.e. with his wife Parvati and child Skanda. On the north wall, goddess Durga appears as Mahisamardini, her warrior form. Riding her lion, she hunts down the buffalo-headed demon Mahisa. On the south side, Vishnu lies on the serpent Ananta, symbol of infinite time, while two demons (evil and ignorance) strive to awaken him. In the Varaha 2 cavern, whose columns are supported by horned lions, we discover Vishnu as a boar carrying the goddess Earth emerging from the waters. Vishnu appears in several places on the Unesco World Heritage site as a Brahmin dwarf or as a shepherd.
The Taj Mahal
A symbol of India throughout the world, the Taj Mahal was built in the 17th century. Built between 1631 and 1653 in Agra, this jewel of Indo-Islamic architecture celebrates Mughal emperor Shah Jahan's love for Mumtaz Mahal. The majestic edifice is none other than the mausoleum of the maharaja's third wife. Mumtaz was in fact his first love, whom his father forbade him to marry because of his rank. He imposed two wives on him, both of whom did not consummate his marriage. When his father died, the emperor was finally able to unite with his beloved. Mumtaz bore him fourteen children, before dying on June 17, 1631. Devastated, Shâh Jahân demanded that his architects build an edifice worthy of paradise. A symbol of his eternal love.
Today, sunrise and sunset cast a romantic glow over the white marble monument. Its marquetry-encrusted facades play with light. Every surface is inlaid with stone or finely sculpted in stucco. Marble is used in the most important parts.
Shâh Jahân initiated a vast construction program.
The first example of a garden tomb, built before the Taj Mahal, can be visited in Delhi. A jewel of the Mughal period, Humayun's tomb dates back to 1560. The octagonal interior features stone and marble inlays on red sandstone.
Characteristics of Indian art
Unlike other cultures influenced by Islam, Indian art has never abandoned figurative art.
The distinctive feature of Indian aesthetics is its permanence. Certain characteristics have endured for two millennia. Religious art dominates, even if religion and everyday life are so intertwined that it is difficult to distinguish between them.
The human figure is idealized. Generally depicted as adults, they show no signs of aging, illness or weakness. There's no sense of modesty either, just an exaltation of the human body. The nude is barely veiled. Women proudly display their sensuality, with refinement and gentleness.
Indian sculptors and painters happily draw from the pantheon of 33 million gods. However, the great Trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva reigns supreme. Each takes on different appearances and attributes, depending on the story. In addition, local beliefs enrich the range of incarnations. These avatars are inspired by the animal kingdom, and the qualities inherent in each species.
Treatises set out the canons to be respected. According to these 6 Shadanga, all artists must infuse their creations with beauty of form, harmony of proportion, emotion, aesthetics, realism and balance of color. Despite this, standards have never hindered the dynamism of Indian art.
The emergence of classicism
The Gupta dynasty (circa 4th-6th century) was characterized by the retreat of the human figure in favor of divine subjects. Brahman subjects benefited from the graphic perfection acquired over the ages. Art remained narrative, but gradually lost its warmth. The classical style spread throughout Asia.
Throughout India, local schools began to assert themselves from the 7th century onwards. The decline of Buddhism, which disappeared in the 12th century, had repercussions on the plastic arts. The Vedic religion that succeeded it inspired more eventful and grandiose works.
Two trends emerged: one that perpetuated the canons, the other that combined sculpture with architecture.
Painting, less developed, was enriched by Iranian and then European influences. The superb frescoes of Ajanta (Maharashtra State - 1st to 7th centuries) are a case in point. In these caves, a profusion of lively scenes illustrate the life of Buddha in a style at the height of Indian classicism. Painters executed portraits and court scenes. Miniaturists illustrated Brahmanic poems. Palaces were adorned with frescoes and galleries of paintings. An impressive collection of 19th-century paintings can be seen in Cochin (Kochi), at the Pareekshith Thampura Museum, or the Durbar Hall Art Gallery.
Rajput paint
Empires and dynasties have succeeded one another in the agricultural lands of Rajasthan. Painting developed particularly well in this state.
Under the Islamic-dominated dynasty of the great Mughals (1528-1858), painting workshops proliferated. Each work, born of collaboration, was anonymous.
Several schools of painting emerged between the 16th and 19th centuries. The first were those of Mewār, then Bundi. Dominated by illumination, this court art was inspired by Persian miniatures and European engraving. Rajput painting illustrates Hinduism (Râma and Krishna) or, to a lesser extent, feelings such as love. The figures, seen in profile, have huge eyes and slender noses. The brightly-colored background is embellished with natural elements.
Under Shah Jahan, two genres were highly prized: the official portrait and the night landscape. In a cold style, the sovereign is shown in a frozen attitude full of pride. A rich palette is used to represent his authority in every possible way, including standing on a globe. Inspired by Western iconography, the painters introduce cherubs that unfurl odes to his glory on banners. In manuscripts, naturalistic elements inspired by European trends made their appearance.
Post-colonialism
After becoming a British colony in the 19th century, India saw the opening of art schools promoting European styles. The influence worked both ways. The British painter Horace Van Ruith depicted the life of a Brahmin household, while Indian painters discovered a Western vision of Romanticism.
The year 1947 and India's Independence marked a cultural turning point. Artists embarked on a quest for new styles. From then on, their taste for experimentation continued to grow. In 1952, six artists formed the Bombay Progressive Artists' Group. Although short-lived, all the major visual artists of the 1950s joined the group. Maqbool Fida Husain (1915-2011), founder of this progressive movement, renewed narrative painting and cubism. Influenced by Picasso, Husain fused Indian aesthetics with the master's innovations.
In the South, Indian modernism arrived through the Madras movement, born in the 1960s in Chennai. In the wake of Independence, artists questioned national identity. The first Indian director of the Madras School of Arts and Crafts, Devi Prasad Roy Chowdhury, established the first art curriculum in the South, laying the foundations for the first modern art movement. In sculpture, the movement was led by S. Dhanapal. Unlike other modern movements such as the Bombay Progressive Artists Group, the Madras School rejected all European inspiration. For three decades, these artists drew on history, mythology, folklore and local iconography to develop a nationalist vocabulary. Figuration and abstraction coexist. KV Haridasan (1937-2014), a pioneer of neo-Tantric art, represents the abstract tendency; C Douglas, a painter and sculptor born in 1951, started out in geometric abstraction, before settling in the village of Cholamandalam, where he mixed means of expression and figuration with abstraction.
Amrita Sher-Gil
A pioneer of women artists in India, Amrita Sher-Gil (1913-1941) showed that the arts are not just for men. Of Hungarian and Sikh origin, Amrita Sher-Gil received a varied artistic education. In Paris, she enrolled at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière, then at the Beaux-Arts. She turned to painting in the open air. Her style became simpler on her return to India. There, she portrayed her image of India through portraits of locals. Her style took root at the crossroads of East and West. In 1937, she produced a trilogy of South Indian works, of which Brahmacharis remains one of her most accomplished. Her refined style is as much about form as color. The artist never ceases to disrupt codes, and tackles the representation of women in Woman Resting on Charpoy (1940).
His works were donated to the nation after his death at the age of 28. Celebrated in the 1970s and 1980s, she is often cited in debates on identity.
The year Amrita Sher-Gil painted her masterpiece, 1937, India's first abstract artist, Zarina Hashmi, was born.
Current scene
Indian contemporary art encompasses an infinite range of styles. Many of these talents have achieved international recognition. Anish Kapoor, born in 1954, moved to London in the 1970s, but continues to claim to be from Mumbai. From the outset, his uncluttered style attracted attention. Interest grew as his floor-based works took on gigantic proportions. Kapoor plays with surfaces. Initially reflective, they are then painted with Vantablack, a black that absorbs light to create the illusion of a cavity. He won a prize at the Venice Biennale, followed by the coveted Turner Prize.
His contemporary Atul Dodiya came to prominence in 1999 with a series on Mahatma Gandhi. The artist now includes Bollywood images in his installations and photo assemblages.
Sculptor Sakshi Gupta, born in 1979, recycles everyday materials, adding a touch of spirituality with the aid of light. Certain compositions, such as the grandiose Some Beasts, evoke the animals of Indian mythology.
A superstar of contemporary art, Subodh Gupta was born in 1964. From humble beginnings, he trained as a painter before branching out into a variety of media. Eventually, he turned to sculpture, his theme revolving around Indian culture. Cows and everyday objects are presented to reflect the economic changes in his country.
Out of doors
Multifaceted artist Harshvardhan Kadam dialogues with the public through urban art. His talent lies in painting, whether on canvas or mural, book illustration or animated films. Kadam's work includes Song of the City on the wall of Yerwada prison in Pune. At 320 meters long and 7 meters high, it is the largest mural in India. Born in 1984, Kadam, aka Inkbrushnme, paints mythological scenes on walls all over the world.
Street art is a way of life in India. Bollywood stars are painted on rickshaws, advertisements on walls, and gods on storefronts to remind people that urinating in public is forbidden. Even in the most remote villages, painting in the open air is a tradition.
The first district of New Delhi to open up to street artists was Khirki Village. It was here that a striking Buddha face wearing an anti-pollution mask was once painted next to a rubbish dump. Unfortunately, it has since been covered in white paint. But that hasn't dampened the spirits of the locals. Khirki is home to a number of young galleries, as well as Khoj, a contemporary art center offering residencies and innovative events.
The capital's tallest (45 metres) and most iconic fresco adorns the façade of the Police Headquarters. The famous smiling portrait of Gandhi is the work of Anpu Varkey and German artist Hendrick ECB Beikirch. This was the first official commission for public art. It was created in January 2014, as part of the St+Art Delhi Festival. The St+Art India association promotes public art in India's major metropolises. In the long term, it hopes to generate creative hubs and energize neighborhoods. And it works! In Shahpur Jat, south Delhi's designer district, the festival's success is such that its streets have been transformed. Trendy cafés, workshops and fashion houses have sprung up. Lodhi Colony, Moolchand and Khan Market soon contributed to Delhi's artistic development.
In Mumbai, the St+Art festival enlivens the Mahim Art District, while in Chennai, it brings Kannagi to life. Frescoes on the theme of love, peace and local life are worthy heirs to an art that is strikingly human.
