Thanjavur Painting

Originating in the Tamil Nadu town of Thanjavur (also spelled Tanjore), Thanjavur painting is a traditional South Indian painting style.  The Nayakas of Thanjavur, who were ruled by the Vijayanagara Rayas, promoted art, primarily classical dance and music, literature in Telugu and Tamil, and temple paintings of primarily Hindu religious themes around 1600 AD. This is when the art form first found its immediate sources and inspiration.  However, it is safe to assume that the Maratha court of Thanjavur (1676–1855) is where Thanjavur painting as we know it now first appeared.Inlay of glass beads and fragments or, very infrequently, valuable and semi-precious gems, shimmering gold foils overlaid on delicate but vast gesso work, and rich and bright colors are characteristics of Thanjavur paintings.  European or Company painting techniques, as well as Deccani, Vijayanagara, and Maratha influences, may all be seen in Thanjavur paintings.  The majority of artworks depict Hindu gods, goddesses, and saints, essentially functioning as devotional icons.   Hindu Purana, Sthala Purana, and other religious text episodes were visualized, sketched, traced, and painted. The main figure or figures were positioned in the center of the image, usually in an architecturally defined area like a mantapa or prabhavali, and were encircled by a number of supporting figures, themes, and subjects.

A Thanjavur painting of Radha Krishna

Because Thanjavur paintings are panel paintings created on wooden planks, they are known locally as palagai padam (palagai = "wooden plank"; padam = "picture").  These paintings have evolved into mementos for South Indian celebrations in the present day.

History and Brief Introduction

A Thanjavur painting of the ten Sikh Gurus with Bhai Bala and Bhai Mardana – 20th century

The 11th-century Chola wall paintings in the Brihadeeswarar temple (known in Tamil as Periya Koyil or Pervudaiyar Koyil) and Nayak period paintings, which are frequently superimposed on the earlier 16th-century Chola paintings, give Thanjavur a special place in Indian painting history. After the Vijayanagara Empire collapsed and Hampi was sacked during the Battle of Talikota in 1565 CE, painters who had relied on the empire's patronage migrated.  A few of them relocated to Thanjavur and worked there under the Thanjavur Nayakas' sponsorship.  Following their victory against the Thanjavur Nayakas, the Maratha kings started to support the Thanjavur atelier.In order to develop the distinctive Thanjavur painting style, the artists took in the regional inspirations as well as the distinct preferences of their Maratha clientele.  The important structures, palaces, chatrams, and homes of the Maratha kings and nobles were painted and decorated by Thanjavur painters in addition to temples.

Vijayanagara Rayas

Nayaka period paintings in the Peruvudaiyar Koil

For a long time, the Vijayanagara empire—which was established by Harihara and Bukka—acted as a barrier against the quickly spreading Islamic influence from the distant North and the adjacent Deccan.  The Peninsular South did experience a slow infiltration of Western influences, but the Vijayanagara empire made sure that the more ancient Hindu creative traditions were safeguarded.  Krishnadevaraya had brought the empire to its pinnacle (1509–29).  During its height, its domain covered the whole South Indian peninsula, from the Tungabhadra River in the north to Kanyakumari in the south, the Arabian Sea's Malabar coast in the west, and the Coromandel coast on the Bay of Bengal in the east. While touring sacred sites in Tamil Nadu (Tamilagam) in 1521–1522, Krishnadevaraya, as was his custom, generously donated to temples and other places of worship. It is reasonable to assume that part of this generosity was also directed toward artists and the arts.

Thanjavur Nayakas

By means of Nayaka Governors, who also oversaw the states or provinces that bordered their large kingdom, the Vijayanagara Rayas managed their empire.  Under the rule of Achyutaraya (1529–42), Krishnadevaraya's half-brother and successor, Thanjavur became the third significant Nayaka state in Tamil Nadu, after Senji and Madurai.  Sevappa Nayaka was the first in the Thanjavur Nayaka line (1532–72).  Sevappa governed for a number of years with the help of his son Achyutappa (1564–1614), who went on to succeed him.  When the Vijayanagara empire collapsed under Achyutappa's rule, many writers, philosophers, musicians, and painters fled to neighboring kingdoms like Mysore and Thanjavur during that time. Raghunatha Nayaka, Achyutappa's son, succeeded him, and Vijayaraghava Nayaka followed.  A great supporter of art and artists, Raghunatha was perhaps the most successful of the Thanjavur Nayaka rulers. He also helped create the distinctive school of Thanjavur artists who eventually developed the Thanjavur painting style under the Marathas.

Marathas

A Tanjore Glass painting of Venugopala Krishna flanked by Gopikas

The half-brother of Chatrapati Shivaji, Ekoji, also known as Venkoji (1676–83), marched into Thanjavur on behalf of the Adil Shah of Bijapur, under whom he served as a general, due to internal strife within the Nayaka line.  The Maratha rule was subsequently established after he took Thanjavur.  Ekoji and his successors, such as Tulajaji, Serfoji II (Sarabhoji in Tamil), and others, continued to be significant benefactors of the arts and artists despite the sporadic conflicts that followed Thanjavur's conquest by the Nawab of Arcot and Haidar Ali.  By the time Serfoji II succeeded to the Maratha throne at Thanjavur, the British had assumed full control of the state's governance, leaving the king with nothing more than a ceremonial authority over the fort and a small portion of the surrounding territory.Serfoji II had to defeat his paternal uncle Amarasimha in a fierce contest for the Maratha kingdom of Thanjavur, but it was during his rule [6] that Thanjavur painting blossomed and took on the shape and style that we now associate with it. Serfoji II had numerous challenges during his rule, including from Amarasimha, who continued to operate a rival court in Thiruvidaimarudur even after his accession.  Though there were difficulties during Serfoji's reign, Thanjavur art and many other related fields saw significant advancements.

Shivaji II, the final Maratha emperor (who was just named after his far bigger predecessor) died childless, and the British followed suit by annexing the Thanjavur state to their dominions under the infamous Doctrine of Lapse, bringing the Marathas to a sad end.  Following the decline of Maratha control, the Thanjavur artists were still supported by the commercial Chettiar society.  The Chettiars promoted Shaivite themes since they were ardent Shaivites.  The biographies of the sixty-three Nayanmars (Saivaite saints) and the sixty-four miracles (Thiruvilaiyadal Puranam) of Lord Shiva are depicted in massive Thanjavur paintings in one of their monasteries in Koviloor, with minute Tamil labels.   Similarly, a big artwork depicting 108 Vishnu temples can be found at the Bhimarajagoswami monastery in Thanjavur.

Style and technique

The scale of Thanjavur paintings varied according to the purpose, the subject, and the patron's preference.  Large paintings of the Maratha rulers, their courtiers, and their nobles were produced and placed in Maratha palaces and buildings as architectural accents.  As Dallapiccola puts it: "The paintings were made on canvas and adhered to a wooden frame. This was a significant change from the pan-Indian custom of small-scale paintings that were intended to be shown on the walls of bhajan halls or domestic puja rooms.  The topics were typically gods and goddesses, sacred sites, religious figures, and occasionally portraits, just like in painted albums created for European customers.Chalk white, turquoise blues, rich greens, vibrant reds, and the extravagant use of inset glass beads and gold foil made up their brilliant color scheme.  In certain cases, the paintings even featured precious stones.  The style's defining characteristics include the huge format of most of these pieces and their comparatively straightforward composition.  This school was the most well-liked in Tamil Nadu till the early 1900s and was heavily influenced by European methods.

Tanjore Glass painting of Raja Sarabhoji, c. 1860

In addition to canvas, other surfaces painted on were walls, wooden panels, glass, paper, mica, and exotic materials like ivory.  Usually worn as cameo pendants, or rajaharam, small ivory pictures were very fashionable.

 Using the methods of Chinese reverse glass painting, Thanjavur glass paintings gained popularity under Serfoji II as a quicker and less expensive art.  To create the illusion of jewelry and valuable stones, metal strips were pounded into translucent spaces on the back of a glass sheet to create the paintings.  The majority of the paintings featured Hindu saints and deities.  Other portraits, both secular and courtly, were also produced.

Arabic gum was typically used to adhere a canvas to a teak or jackfruit wood board in order to create a Thanjavur painting.  After applying a binding medium and a paste of French chalk (gopi) or powdered limestone equally, the canvas was allowed to dry.  After that, the artist used a stencil to draw or trace a detailed outline of the primary and supporting topics on the canvas.  The Gesso piece was created using a mixture of limestone powder and a binding agent known as sukkan or makku.  In several places, such as pillars, arches, thrones, costumes, etc., gold leaves and diamonds of various colors were inlaid.  Lastly, colors were added to the drawing.

In the past, artists employed natural colors such as mineral and vegetable dyes; today, artists use chemical paints.  Typically, red or dark brown were utilized for outlining.  Despite the use of blue and green, red was preferred for the background.  Lord Vishnu, Lord Nataraja, and his consort, Goddess Sivakami, were all blue, white, and green, respectively.  There were times when black was used, yet the sky was always blue.  The paintings' depictions of the people were also conventional; nearly all of them had almond-shaped eyes, round faces, and sleek, streamlined bodies.With the people positioned inside arches, drapes, and ornamental borders, the composition is two-dimensional and static.  The focal point of the artwork is the main topic, which is significantly larger than the other subjects.  They also depicted angels or seraphs on either side of the main figure, similar to those found in Islamic miniatures and European art.  The figures were painted in flat, brilliant colors, with the exception of the face, which displayed shading.  The shading used in Thanjavur painting was less about following European lighting and perspective rules and more about giving the impression of depth.

Artists

In his 1806 book Oriental Drawings, British chronicler Charles Gold claimed that Tanjore paintings were created by "Moochys or Artists of India."  Paintings of the Thanjavur style were traditionally created by the Raju community of Thanjavur and Tiruchi, also known as Jinigara or Chitragara, and the Nayudu community of Madurai.  Prior to the fall of the Vijayanagara empire and the advent of Nayak authority in Madurai and Thanjavur, the artists (Rajus & Naidus) were Telugu-speaking individuals from the artistically thriving "Rayalseema" region of Andhra who migrated to Tamil Nadu.

The painters produced a broad range of paintings on various topics and in varying quality according on the patron's interest, urgency, and—above all—financial capability.  In keeping with the Indian artistic tradition, the master artisans, many of whom choose to remain anonymous and never signed their works, executed the art with a fair amount of ritual purity and humility.  A small number of pieces signed by Thanjavur artists are, nevertheless, also well-known.  Among the distinguished descendants of the Raju community to establish themselves as artists in the contemporary era was C. Kondiah Raju, the well-known calendar artist from Kovilpatti.

Influences

Tirupati painting of Lord Venkateshwarar in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London

The Tanjore school of painting developed in the last years of South Indian classical art, during a period of upheaval in the community in which it was created.  Tanjore paintings are undoubtedly influenced by a syncretic style, which is distinguished by its integration of several modern cultural elements, including Tamil, Telugu, Maratha, European, Deccani, Folk, and so on.  The other major South Indian painting styles, all of which were greatly affected by the Vijayanagara school, were key sources of inspiration for this style.  These may have been most closely influenced by the paintings of Kalamkari and Tirupati.

at particular, Tirupati paintings were created at the well-known temple town utilizing a variety of mediums and techniques, such as painted terracotta reliefs, brass repousse pieces, paintings on paper and canvas, etc.  The most typical examples were framed and presented in tidy wooden boxes, painted and gilded terracotta relief slabs of the deity that the pilgrim-devotee might worship in the Puja room and take back as sacred mementos.  There are other known paintings of the primary deity that resemble Tanjore paintings, but are gilded and encrusted with jewels. In addition, Tanjore paintings were closely associated with the gilded, stone-set jewelry that was popular in Thanjavur and the crafts of painted and carved wood on the one hand.

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