Radha Krishna - Madhubani style

Mithila or Madhubani painting is a style of painting practiced in some districts of Bihar state, India. This ancient art of wall painting is used to decorate the houses during festivals and other special occasions such as marriage, child birth etc. The painters, mainly women, use vegetable dyes to paint specific motifs and geometric patterns in bright colours. These paintings are intuitive and appealing, often inspired by religion as well as the life and surroundings of the people. Intrigued by Madhubani paintings displayed at an exhibition, I decided to attend a workshop on Madhubani art for a fortnight in 2001. During the workshop, we learnt about Madhubani art and created paintings that were similar to those done by Madhubani painters. Subsequently, I had read more about this art form, and incorporated their motifs and style in my compositions. This resulted in an amalgamation of my style of work and what I had learnt about this art form.

I shall discuss Madhubani paintings and their often repeated motifs in the future posts. However, on the eve of ‘Krishna Jayanthi’ I wish to share the painting of ‘Radha Krishna’ with you. Executed with ink using nib on pre-treated paper, this painting depicts Lord Krishna with his consort, Radha. The clothes and jewellery are drawn with geometric patterns using fine lines. When compared to traditional ‘Madhubani’ paintings, the facial features are more stylized in my work. I have, however refrained from using colours to make the line work stand out.

Radha Krishna - Ink on paper - 10" x 13"

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