Painting in Kerala

Kerala has a rich artistic tradition that ranges from ritualistic paintings like Kalamezhuthu to modern painting styles. Painting can be divided into various categories such as cave paintings, wall paintings (murals), Kalamezhuthu, Kolamezhuthu, Mukhathezhuthu, and Mukhavaranam.

1. Cave paintings

The oldest drawings in Kerala are found in the Edakkal Caves near Sultan Bathery in Wayanad. The cave paintings in Edakkal are believed to date back to the Neolithic period. Historians believe that these cave paintings date back to 7000 BC. The Edakkal Caves contain stone drawings of humans and animals, as well as ancient Brahmi script. The paintings found here include hair ornaments shaped like leaves, elephants, hunting dogs, horses, bulls, spoked wheels, and wheeled carts. These paintings were discovered in 1901 by a British police officer named Fred Fawcett. Pandavanpara is located in Perumkadavila village in Neyyattinkara taluk of Thiruvananthapuram district. Like the carvings in the Edakkal caves in Wayanad, the petroglyphs at Pandavanpara were made using sharp stone tools. The cave paintings in the Shenthuruni forests of Kollam district are believed to date back to the Mesolithic period. Another place in Kerala where prehistoric paintings are found is the Ezhuthupura Cave, a granite rock located in the Koodakkud Sandalwood Conservation Forest in Marayoor in Idukki district. The Ezhuthupura Cave, which looks like a serpent's den, is known as the 'Cave of Pictures'.

2. Murals

Murals are paintings painted on the walls of temples and palaces using natural dyes. These paintings are made in a unique style using manayola, kolarak, chailyam, amarineelam, kadukka, various types of leaves and mineral sand on a lime-coated surface. The murals feature images of gods and goddesses and narrations of mythological themes. Mural art is known in the West as fresco. The four main elements that can be seen in the murals of Kerala are the primary surface, the secondary surface, the pigments and the binding medium.

Murals of Kerala can be classified chronologically into four periods - the primary phase, the post-primary phase, the medieval phase and the post-medieval phase. The murals in the temples of Thirunanthikarai, Kanthalur, Trivikramangalam and Parthivapuram are believed to have been painted in the primary period. The Ramayana paintings in Mattancherry and the murals in the temples of Vadakkunathan and Thiruvanchikulam in Thrissur are believed to have been painted in the post-primary period. The murals in Triprayar, the Padmanabhaswamy temple in Thiruvananthapuram and the palaces of Padmanabhapuram and Krishnapuram (Gajendramoksham mural) are believed to have been painted in the medieval period. The murals in the Thirunanthikarai cave temple (Kanyakumari) are believed to be the oldest murals in Kerala's own style.

The paintings in the Padmanabhapuram palace such as Mahavishnu, Pootanamoksham, Bakavadham, Kaliyamardanam and Sriramapattabhishekam are famous. The paintings in Panayanarkavu Temple, Kottakkal Shiva Temple in Malappuram, Ettumanoor Temple, Thalayolaparambu Pundareekapuram Temple in Kottayam district and the paintings in Mattancherry Palace are famous. There are also murals in Christian churches. Christian murals in churches in Kannur, Koratty, Akaparamba in Ernakulam district and Cheppad in Alappuzha district are also famous. There is a mural on the theme of the Last Supper of Christ in Kottayam Church. The mural in Kanjoor Church depicts Tipu's campaign. Training in mural painting is provided in Guruvayur and Aranmula Vastu Vidyagurukulam.

Gajendramoksha mural

The Gajendramoksham Mural is one of the largest murals in Kerala. The 'Gajendramoksham Mural' is located in the Krishnapuram Palace in Kayamkulam, Alappuzha district. This mural is based on the story of 'Ashtamaskandham' from the Mahabharata. The area of ​​the Gajendramoksham mural is 154 square feet. This painting is painted using turmeric powder, lime, brick powder, Panachakka paste, and aloe vera.

Freedom Wall mural

The Freedom Wall is a mural at the Government Sanskrit College, Thiruvananthapuram. The Freedom Wall is a large mural art spread over an area of ​​20,000 feet. It was created as part of the Amrita Mahotsav of the Indian freedom struggle. It was declared the largest mural related to the Indian freedom struggle in the India Book of Records.

Painters of Kerala

Raja Ravi Varma is a painter who brought global fame to Kerala painting. Ravi Varma's painting style is a blend of European painting style and Indian painting style. K.C.S. Panicker, the founder of the Chozhamandalam art center, is a famous painter. His series of paintings called Words and Symbols was very well received. A.S. Namboothiri, M.V. Devan and others are his disciples. Kerala Kalagramam in Mahe is an art center founded by M.V. Devan on the model of Chozhamandalam. C.N. Karunakaran, T.K. Padmini and others are painters who have developed their own style in painting.

Cartoon

Cartoon is a line drawing that combines laughter and thought. All the leading dailies in Kerala have cartoon columns. Cartoonists Shankar, P.K. Mantri, writer O.V. Vijayan, filmmakers Aravindan, Abu Abraham, B.M. Gafoor, etc. are nationally famous Keralite cartoonists of the past generation.

Painting Personalities

Raja Ravi Varma

Raja Ravi Varma is a painter who brought global fame to Kerala painting. He is known as the painter among kings and the king of painters. His uncle, Bharani Thirunal Raja Raja Varma, was his first guru. He is known as 'Chitramezhuthu Koyithampuran'. Some of Ravi Varma's strengths are that he used the medium of oil painting, which was not very popular among Indian painters, in a way that even foreigners could not do, and that he made his paintings accessible to even the common people. Ravi Varma's painting style is a blend of European painting style and Indian painting style. Born in Kilimanoor Palace, his oil paintings, such as Nair Woman, Hamsa and Damayanti, Shakuntala, and Woman in the Moonlight, are notable. Raja Ravi Varma was the first to create the multi-colored pictures of gods and goddesses printed in calendars. The painting of Parumala Thirumeni, kept in St. Gregory's Church, Kumarakom, was also painted by Rajaravivarma.

K.C.S. Panicker

Kolozhi Cheerambathur Sankara Paniker was born on 31 May 1911 in Coimbatore. He studied at the Madras School of Arts and later became its principal. K.C.S. Panicker was a versatile painter who was nominated as one of the 9 eminent artists of the country by the Government of India. He is known as the father of modern painting in Kerala. He founded the 'Cholamandal Artists’ Village' near Chennai in Tamil Nadu. In 1944 , he founded the Progressive Painters Association in Chennai. His main disciples were M.V. Devan, K.M. Vasudevan Namboothiri, C.N. Karunakaran, T.K. Padmini, Kattoor Narayana Pillai, Kanayi Kunhiraman, Akkitham Narayanan, Paris Viswanathan and others. Dancing Girl, Life of a Malabar Farmer, Papini, Christ and Lazarus, Lumbini, Dog, Words and Symbols, etc. are some of K.C.S. Panikkar's famous paintings.

T.K.Padmini

Born on 11 May 1940 in Kadanchery, Ponnani. She is known as the Amrita Shergill of Kerala. The main theme of Padmini's paintings is rural women and their lives. Dark colours and thick lines are the hallmarks of Padmini's paintings. T.K. Padmini's paintings fall into the Romanticism and Expressionism categories. She painted 230 paintings, including about thirty oil paintings, between 1960 and 1969. Her main paintings are Neelanadhi, Dhyanam, Nilavu, Desire, Dreamland, Dawn, Woman, Growth, Barrier Ground, Portrait, etc. The last painting she painted was a girl flying a kite. She died on 11 May 1969 at the age of 29. Ponniam Chandran wrote a biography of T.K. Padmini titled Kalayum Jeevithavum.

C.N.Karunakaran

Born in 1940 in Brahmakulam near Guruvayur, C.N. Karunakaran has a unique writing style that is rich in documents. He was the former chairman of the Kerala Lalithakala Academy. He founded the first private art gallery in Kerala, ' Chitrakootam'. His famous painting is Tribal Witches.

K.M. Vasudevan Namboothiri (Artist Namboothiri)

He was born on September 13, 1925 in Karuvattumana, Ponnani. His teacher was K.C.S. Panikkar. He has developed his own unique style in drawing. V.K.N. described him as the "Paramasivan". In 1974, he received the Best Art Director award for the Malayalam film Uttarayanam directed by G. Aravindan. In 2003, he received the Raja Ravi Varma Award and in 2004, he received the Bala Sahitya Institute Award for his drawings in the book 'Children's Ramayanam'. He passed away on July 7, 2023 .

Cartoonist Shankar

Considered the father of political cartoons in India. Born on 31 July 1902 in Kayamkulam. Real name Keshav Shankar Pillai. He founded Shankar's Weekly, Children's Book Trust (1957), and Shankar's International Dolls Museum (1965). Died on 26 December 1989. The Shankar Memorial National Cartoon Museum and Art Gallery of the Kerala Lalithakala Academy is located in Krishnapuram, Kayamkulam.

3. Kalamezhuthu

Kalamezhuthu is a ritual that has existed since ancient times in some communities in Kerala. Kalamezhuthu, a technique in which natural colored powders are drawn on the floor with fingers, is also known as 'Dhooli Chitram'/'Dhooli Shilpam'. Kalam is painted using green, yellow, red, black, and white colored powders (panchavarna powder) and their mixtures. The deity to whom the Kalam belongs is sung and praised. Five natural substances are used for the colors in the Kalam. White is rice powder, yellow is turmeric, black is coal, red is a mixture of lime and turmeric, and green is powdered leaves. Kalamezhuthu is mainly performed at Bhadrakali temples, Sarppakavukal, and Ayyappan temples. Kalamezhuthu is painted by communities like Kaniyan, Pulluvan, Malayan, Velanmar, and Mannar. Nagakalam is a ritual performed by the Pulluvar community in central Kerala, and is a special ritual associated with snake worship. Kalamezhuthu is the main ceremony of the Ayyappan Theeyattu and Bhadrakali Theeyattu.

4. Kolamezhuthu

Kolamezhuthu is a popular art form among the Tamil Brahmins of Kerala. Every morning, the women of the family draw a 'kolam' using rice powder on the front of the house. The purpose of 'kolam' is to welcome the goddess of wealth and prosperity.

5. Mukhathezhuthu

In ritual art forms, Mukhathezhuthu refers to the application of paint on the faces of artists. Mukhathezhuthu is essential in various art forms of Kerala such as Mudiyettu, Theyyam, Thira, Thullal, Kaliyoottu, Kathakali, Krishnanattam, Koodiyattam, and Koothu. Mukhathezhuthu is based on the appearance of the deity being presented. The traditional face painting methods are Pullitezhuthu, Shankhitezhuthu, Hanuman, Kannittezhuthu, Mankannittezhuthu, Anchupulliyittezhuthu etc.

6. Mukhavaranam

Mukhavaranam or facial masks are another form of folk painting. These masks are made by painting the spathe of the arecanut tree using different coloured powders. Folk painting styles are evident also in the dolls made for Tholppavakoothu. Face Paintings used for Padayani are another form of folk painting.