Dravidian mural painting
Encyclopedia
Fresco
Fresco is any of several related mural painting types, executed on plaster on walls or ceilings. The word fresco comes from the Greek word affresca which derives from the Latin word for "fresh". Frescoes first developed in the ancient world and continued to be popular through the Renaissance...
s depicting mythology
Mythology
The term mythology can refer either to the study of myths, or to a body or collection of myths. As examples, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece...
and legends, which are drawn on the walls of temples and churches in South India
South India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...
, principally in Kerala
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
. Ancient temples, churches and palaces in Kerala
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
, South India
South India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...
, display an abounding tradition of mural
Mural
A mural is any piece of artwork painted or applied directly on a wall, ceiling or other large permanent surface. A particularly distinguishing characteristic of mural painting is that the architectural elements of the given space are harmoniously incorporated into the picture.-History:Murals of...
paintings mostly dating back between the 9th to 12th centuries CE when this form of art enjoyed Royal patronage.
Fresco-Secco
The masterpieces of Kerala mural art include: the ShivaShiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
Temple in Ettumanoor, the Ramayana
Ramayana
The Ramayana is an ancient Sanskrit epic. It is ascribed to the Hindu sage Valmiki and forms an important part of the Hindu canon , considered to be itihāsa. The Ramayana is one of the two great epics of India and Nepal, the other being the Mahabharata...
murals of Mattancherry Palace
Mattancherry Palace
The Mattancherry Palace, also known as the Dutch Palace, in Mattancherry, Kochi, in the Indian state of Kerala features Kerala murals depicting Hindu temple art, portraits and exhibits of the Rajas of Kochi.-History:...
and Vadakkumnatha kshetram
Kshetram
Kshetram literally means a place. In Hindu mythology, it is referred to as the physical holy location where a temple or a collection of temples, its tank and deities exist.-Sacred geography:...
. The "Gajendra Moksham" mural painting in the Krishnapuram Palace near Kayamkulam
Kayamkulam
Kayamkulam is a town and a municipality in Alappuzha district of the Indian state of Kerala. It is an ancient maritime trading centre. One of the largest power plants in Kerala, run by the NTPC, is located in Kayamkulam. Krishnapuram Palace is located nearby and an old cashew factory.Kayamkulam is...
and the mural paintings in the sanctom of Padmanabha temple at Thiruvananthapuram
Thiruvananthapuram
Thiruvananthapuram , formerly known as Trivandrum, is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala and the headquarters of the Thiruvananthapuram District. It is located on the west coast of India near the extreme south of the mainland...
are very famous.
St. George Syrian Orthodox Church of the nasranis
Syrian Malabar Nasrani
The Syrian Malabar Nasrani people, also known as Saint Thomas Christians, "'Nasrani Mappila'" and Nasranis, are an ethnoreligious group from Kerala, India, adhering to the various churches of the Saint Thomas Christian tradition...
, depicting Biblical narrations. The fresco paintings of Kerala
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
is called as "Fresco-secco
Fresco-secco
Fresco-secco is a fresco painting technique in which pigments ground in water are tempered using egg yolk or whole egg mixed with water which are applied to plaster that has been moistened to simulate fresh plaster. No white is used...
". Its features are the lime medium and technique in which the prepared walls are painted only after it gets completely dry. It is derived probably from the ancient art of Kalamezhuthu. It adheres to the principles of the 'Shilparatna
Shilparatna
Shilparatna is a classical text on traditional South Indian representational-performing arts. It is particularly influential in painting and theatrical performance. It was authored by Srikumara in 16th century AD...
', the principal text on Indian painting techniques. It specifies that white, yellow, red, black and terreverte or Syama are the pure colours to be used as pure colours or in combination to make murals.
Murals
The murals of Thirunadhikkara Cave TempleThirunadhikkara Cave Temple
Thirunandikkara Cave Temple is a rock-cut cave temple of Pallava art dated seventh and eighth century AD. It is part of Thirunandikkara temple, which is located near Thiruvattar in Kanyakumari district of Tamil Nadu state of South India. Up to the recent past the region around the temple was part...
(now ceded to Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
) and Tiruvanchikulam are considered the oldest relics of Kerala’s own style of murals. Fine mural paintings are depicted in temples at Trikodithanam, Ettumanur, Vaikom, Pundarikapuram, Udayanapuram, Triprangode, Guruvayoor, Kumaranalloor
Kumaranalloor
Kumaranalloor is a panchayat in Kottayam taluka, Kerala, India and near Kottayam Town. Kottayam town is 5 km from Kumaranalloor.Kumaranalloor is a village situated in Kottayam District. The village is famous for Kumaranalloor Devi Temple and the annual Trikarthika festival of the...
, Aymanam
Aymanam
Aymanam is a village in Kottayam District, Kerala, India, the setting of Arundhati Roy's 1997 novel The God of Small Things.-Overview:Ay in the Tamil language means 'five' and Vanam in Sanskrit means 'forests': Ayvanam, or Aymanam, is the land of five forests...
, the Vadakkunathan temple in Trichur and the Sri Padmanabhaswamy temple
Sri Padmanabhaswamy temple
Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu located in Thiruvananthapuram, India. The shrine is currently run by a trust headed by the royal family of Travancore. The temple is one of 108 Divya Desams – principal centres of worship of the deity in Vaishnavism...
at Thiruvananthapuram
Thiruvananthapuram
Thiruvananthapuram , formerly known as Trivandrum, is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala and the headquarters of the Thiruvananthapuram District. It is located on the west coast of India near the extreme south of the mainland...
. Other mural sites are in the churches at Edappally
Edappally
Edappally is one of Kochi's well known neighbourhoods. Its name in English literally translates as 'The City with a Church in the Centre' . The famous church in the centre is St. George's Church which is quite old and is a pilgrimage centre. It is said to be one of the fastest growing areas in...
, Vechur, Cheppad
Cheppad
Cheppad is a scenic village in Karthikapally Taluk of Alleppy District in Kerala State, India. It is about halfway between Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram on the National Highway 47....
and Mulanthuruthy
Mulanthuruthy
Mulanthuruthy, also spelt Mulamthuruthy, is a small town in Ernakulam District of Kerala. It is about 21 km south-east of Ernakulam and 8 km east of Tripunithura....
, and at palaces such as the Krishnapuram Palace near Kayamkulam
Kayamkulam
Kayamkulam is a town and a municipality in Alappuzha district of the Indian state of Kerala. It is an ancient maritime trading centre. One of the largest power plants in Kerala, run by the NTPC, is located in Kayamkulam. Krishnapuram Palace is located nearby and an old cashew factory.Kayamkulam is...
and the Padmanabhapuram Palace
Padmanabhapuram Palace
Padmanabhapuram Palace complex is located in at Padmanabhapuram Fort, close to the town of Thuckalay in Kanyakumari District, Tamilnadu, in India. It is about 20 km from Nagercoil, and about 50 kilometers from Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. The palace complex is inside an old granite...
.
The traditional style mural art form, using natural pigments and vegetable colours, is being revived by a new genre of artists actively involved in researching and teaching mural art at the Sree Sankara Sanskrit College in Kalady
Kalady
Kalady is a village located east of the Periyar river, in the Ernakulam district of Kerala, India. Notably, it is the birthplace of Sri Adi Shankara, and thus is a popular destination for pilgrims...
and also at a mural art school associated with the Guruvayoor temple.
See also
- Indian paintingIndian paintingIndian painting has a very long history, although the seasonally humid Indian climate was difficult for the long-term preservation of paintings and there are far fewer survivals than of other forms of Indian art. The earliest Indian paintings were the rock paintings of pre-historic times, the...
- KeralaKeralaor Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
- MuralMuralA mural is any piece of artwork painted or applied directly on a wall, ceiling or other large permanent surface. A particularly distinguishing characteristic of mural painting is that the architectural elements of the given space are harmoniously incorporated into the picture.-History:Murals of...