chitra (art)

Chitra, also spelled as Citra, is an Indian genre of art that includes painting, sketch and any art form of delineation. The earliest mention of the term ''Chitra'' in the context of painting or picture is found in some of the ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism and Pali texts of Buddhism.

Nomenclature

''Chitra'' (IAST: ''Citra'', चित्र) is a Sanskrit word that appears in the Vedic texts such as hymns 1.71.1 and 6.65.2 of the ''Rigveda''. There, and other texts such as ''Vajasaneyi Samhita'', ''Taittiriya Samhita'', ''Satapatha Brahmana'' and ''Tandya Brahmana'', ''Chitra'' means "excellent, clear, bright, colored, anything brightly colored that strikes the eye, brilliantly ornamented, extraordinary that evokes wonder". In the ''Mahabharata'' and the ''Harivamsa'', it means "picture, sktech, dilineation", and is presented as a genre of ''kala'' (arts). Many texts generally dated to the post-4th-century BCE period, use the term ''Chitra'' in the sense of painting, and ''Chitrakara'' as a painter. For example, the Sanskrit grammarian Panini in verse 3.2.21 of his ''Astadhyayi'' highlights the word ''chitrakara'' in this sense. Halls and public spaces to display paintings are called ''chitrasalas'', and the earliest known mention of these are found in the ''Ramayana'' and the ''Mahabharata''.

A few Indian regional texts such as ''Kasyapa silpa'' refer to painting by others words. For example, ''abhasa'' – which literally means "semblance, shining forth", is used in ''Kasyapa-shilpa'' to mean as a broader category of painting, of which ''chitra'' is one of three types. The verses in section 4.4 of the ''Kasyapa-silpa'' state that there are three types of images – those which are immovable (walls, floor, terracota, stucco), movable, and those which are both movable-immovable (stone, wood, gems). In each of these three, states ''Kasyapa-shipa'', are three classes of expression – ''ardhacitra, citra, and citra-abhasa''. ''Ardhacitra'' is an art form where a high relief is combined with painting and parts of the body is not seen (it appears to be emerging out of the canvas). The ''Citra'' is the form of picture artwork where the whole is represented with or without integrating a relief. ''Citrabhasha'' is the form where an image is represented on a canvas or wall with colors (painting). However, states Commaraswamy, the word ''Abhasa'' has other meanings depending on the context. For example, in Hindu texts on philosophy, it implies the "field of objective experience" in the sense of the intellectual image internalized by a person during a reading of a subject (such as an epic, tale or fiction), or one during a meditative spiritual experience.

In some Buddhist and Hindu texts on methods to prepare a manuscript (palm leaf) or a composition on a cloth, the terms ''lekhya'' and ''alekhya'' are also used in the context of a ''chitra''. More specifically, ''alekhya'' is the space left while writing a manuscript leaf or cloth, where the artist aims to add a picture or painting to illustrate the text.

History

The earliest explicit reference to painting in an Indian text is found in verse 4.2 of the ''Maitri Upanishad'' where it uses the phrase ''citrabhittir'' or "like a painted wall". The Indian art of painting is also mention in a number of Buddhist Pali ''suttas'', but with the modified spelling of ''Citta''. This term is found in the context of either a painting, or painter, or painted-hall (''citta-gara'') in Majjhima Nikaya 1.127, Samyutta Nikaya 2.101 and 3.152, Vinaya 4.289 and others. Among the Jain texts, it is mentioned in Book 2 of the ''Acaranga Sutra'' as it explains that Jaina monk should not indulge in the pleasures of watching a painting.

The '' Kamasutra'', broadly accepted to have been complete by about the 4th-century CE, recommends that the young man should surprise the girl he courts with gifts of color boxes and painted scrolls. The ''Viddhasalabhanjika'' – another Hindu ''kama''- and ''kavya''–text uses chitra-simile in verse 1.16, as "pictures painted by the god of love, with the brush of the mind and the canvas of the heart".

The nature of a ''chitra'' (painting), how the viewer's mind projects a two dimensional artwork into a three dimensional representation, is used by Asanga in ''Mahayana Sutralamkara'' – a 3rd to 5th-century Sanskrit text of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition, to explain "non-existent imagination" as follows:

According to Yoko Taniguchi and Michiyo Mori, the art of painting the caves at the ''c.'' 6th-century Buddhas of Bamiyan site in Afghanistan, destroyed by the Taliban Muslims in the late 1990s, were likely introduced to this region from India along with the literature on early Buddhism.

Texts

There are many important dedicated Indian treatises on ''chitra''. Some of these are chapters within a larger encyclopedia-like text. These include:
*'' Chitrasutras'', chapters 35–43 within the Hindu text '' Vishnudharmottara Purana'' (the standard, and oft referred to text in the Indian tradition)
*'' Chitralaksana'' of Nagnajit (a classic on classical painting, 5th-century CE or earlier making it the oldest known text on Indian painting; but the Sanskrit version has been lost, only version available is in Tibet and it states that it is a translation of a Sanskrit text)
*''Samarangana Sutradhara'' (mostly architecture treatise, contains a large section on paintings)
*''Aparajitaprccha'' (mostly architecture treatise, contains a large section on paintings)
*'' Manasollasa'' (an encyclopedia, contains chapters on paintings)
*''Abhilashitartha chinatamani''
*''Sivatatva ratnakara''
*''Chitra Kaladruma''
*''Silpa ratna''
*''Narada silpa''
*''Sarasvati silpa''
*''Prajapati silpa''
*''Kasyapa silpa''

These and other texts on ''chitra'' not only discuss the theory and practice of painting, some of them include discussions on how to become a painter, the diversity and the impact of a ''chitra'' on viewers, of aesthetics, how the art of painting relates to other arts (''kala''), methods of preparing the canvas or wall, methods and recipes to make color pigments. For example, the 10th-century ''Chitra Kaladruma'' presents recipe for making red color paint from the resin of lac insects. Other colors for the historic frescoes found in India, such as those in the Ajanta Caves, were obtained from nature. They mention earthy and mineral (inorganic) colorants such as yellow and red ochre, orpigment, green celadonite and ultramarine blue (lapis lazuli). The use of organic colorants prepared per a recipe in these texts have been confirmed through residue analysis and modern chromatographic techniques.

Theory

The Indian concepts of painting are described in a range of texts called the ''shilpa shastras''. These typically begin by attributing this art to divine sources such as Vishvakarma and ancient ''rishis'' (sages) such as Narayana and Nagnajit, weaving some mythology, highlighting ''chitra'' as a means to express ideas and beauty along with other universal aspects, then proceed to discuss the theory and practice of painting, sketching and other related arts. Manuscripts of many these texts are found in India, while some are known to be lost but are found outside India such as in Tibet and Nepal. Among these are the ''Citrasutras'' in the 6th-century ''Visnudharmottara Purana'' manuscripts discovered in India, and the ''Citralaksana'' manuscript discovered in Tibet (lost in India). This theory include early Indian ideas on how to prepare a canvas or substrate, measurement, proportion, stance, color, shade, projection, the painting's interaction with light, the viewer, how to captivate the mind, and other ideas.

According to the historic Indian tradition, a successful and impactful painting and painter requires a knowledge of the subject – either mythology or real life, as well as a keen sense of observation and knowledge of nature, human behavior, dance, music, song and other arts. For example, section 3.2 of ''Visnudharmottara Purana'' discusses these requirements and the contextual knowledge needed in ''chitra'' and the artist who produces it. The ''Chitrasutras'' in the ''Vishnudharmottara Purana'' state that the sculpture and painting arts are related, with the phrase "as in Natya, so in Citra". This relationship links them in ''rasa'' (aesthetics) and as forms of expression.

The painting

A ''chitra'' is a form of expression and communication. According to ''Aparajitaprccha'' – a 12th-century text on arts and architecture, just like the water reflects the moon, a ''chitra'' reflects the world. It is a ''rupa'' (form) of how the painter sees or what the painter wants the viewer to observe or feel or experience.

A good painting is one that is alive, breathing, draws in and affects the viewer. It captivates the minds of viewers, despite their diversity. Installed in a ''sala'' (hall or room), it enlivens the space.

The ornaments of a painting are its lines, shading, decoration and colors, states the 6th-century ''Visnudharmottara Purana''. It states that there are eight ''gunas'' (merits, features) of a ''chitra'' that the artist must focus on: (1) posture; (2) proportion; (3) the use of the plumb line; (4) charm; (5) detail (how much and where); (6) verisimilitude; (7) ''kshaya'' (loss, foreshortening) and; (8) ''vrddhi'' (gain). Among the ''dosas'' (demerits, faults) of a painting and related arts, states ''Chitrasutra'', are lines that are weak or thick, absence of variety, errors in scale (oversized eyes, lips, cheeks), inconsistency across the canvas, deviations from the rules of proportion, improper posture or sentiment, and non-merging of colors.

;Limbs of a painting
Two historical sets called "chitra anga", or "limbs of painting" are found in Indian texts. According to the ''Samarangana Sutradhara'' – an 11th-century Sanskrit text on Hindu architecture and arts, a painting has eight limbs:
*''Vartika'' – manufacture of brushes
*''Bhumibandhana'' – preparation of base, plaster, canvas
*''Rekhakarma'' – sketching
*''Varnakarma'' – coloring
*''Vartanakarma'' – shading
*''lekhakarana'' – outlining
*''Dvikakarma'' – second and final lining
*''Lepyakarma'' – final coating

According to Yashodhara's ''Jayamangala'', a Sanskrit commentary on ''Kamasutra'', there are ''sadanga'' (six limbs) in the art of ''alekhyam'' and ''chitra'' (drawing and painting):
*''Rupa-bhedah'', or form distinction; this requires a knowledge of characteristic marks, diversity, manifested forms that distinguish states of something in the same genus/class
*''Pramanani'', or measure; requires knowledge of measurement and proportion rules (''talamana'')
*''Bhava yojanam'', or emotion and its joining with other parts of the painting; requires understanding and representing the mood of the subject
*''Lavanya yojanam'', or rasa, charm; requires understanding and representing the inner qualities of the subject
*''Sadrsyam'', or resemblance; requires knowledge of visual correspondence across the canvas
*''Varnika-bhanga'' or color-pigment-analysis; requires knowledge how colors distribute on the canvas and how they visually impact the viewer

These six limbs are arranged stylistically in two ways. First as a set of compound (Rupa-bhedah and Varnika-bhanda), a set of joining (middle two yojnam), and a set of single words (Pramanani and Sadrsyam). Second, states Victor Mair, the six limbs in this Hindu text are paired in a set of differentiation skills (first two), then a pair of aesthetic skills, and finally a pair of technical skills. These limbs parallel the 12th-century Six principles of Chinese painting of Xie He.{{refn, group=note, The ''Hua Chi'' of Teng Ch'un, a 12th-century Chinese text, mentions the Buddhist temple of Nalanda with frescoes about the Buddha painted inside. It states that the Indian Buddhas look different from those painted by Chinese, as the Indian paintings have Buddha with larger eyes, their ears are curiously stretched and the Buddhas have their right shoulder bare. It then states that the artists first make a drawing of the picture, then paint a vermilion or gold colored base. It also mentions the use of ox-glue and a gum produced from peach trees and willow juice, with the artists preferring the latter. According to Coomaraswamy, the ox-glue in the Indian context mentioned in the Chinese text is probably the same as the recipe found in the Sanskrit text ''Silparatna'', one where the base medium is produced from boiling buffalo skin in milk, followed by drying and blending process.{{sfn, Ananda K. Coomaraswamy, 1930, pp=56–57{{refn, group=note, This process of producing a gelatinous paste for the base of wall paintings is explained in the ''Chitrakala'' chapter of the ''Manasollasa''. This text suggests adding little amounts of colors to this ''lepana'' paste depending on what will be painted on top, and that such a base reduces fading or pealing over time.{{sfn, P. Arundhati, 2003, pp=17–21

The six limbs in ''Jayamangala'' likely reflect the earliest and more established Hindu tradition for ''chitra''. This is supported by the ''Chitrasutras'' found in the ''Vishnudharmottara Purana''. They explicitly mention ''pramanani'' and ''lavanya'' as key elements of a painting, as well as discuss the other four of the six limbs in other sutras. The ''Chitrasutra'' chapters are likely from about the 4th or 5th-century.{{sfn, Victor Mair, 2004, pp=96–102 Numerous other Indian texts touch upon the elements or aspects of a ''chitra''. For example, the ''Aparajitaprccha'' states that the essential elements of a painting are: ''citrabhumi'' (background), the ''rekha'' (lines, sketch), the ''varna'' (color), the ''vartana'' (shading), the ''bhusana'' (decoration) and the ''rasa'' (aesthetic experience).{{sfn, Isabella Nardi, 2007, pp=294–295

The painter

The painter (''chitrakara'', ''rupakara'') must master the fundamentals of measurement and proportions, state the historic ''chitra'' texts of India.{{sfn, Isabella Nardi, 2007, pp=293–295 According to these historic texts, the expert painter masters the skills in measurement, characteristics of subjects, attributes, form, relative proportion, ornament and beauty, states Isabella Nardi – a scholar known for her studies on ''chitra'' text and traditions of India.{{sfn, Isabella Nardi, 2007, pp=295–296 According to the ''Chitrasutras'', a skilled painter needs practice, and is one who is able to paint neck, hands, feet, ears of living beings without ornamentation, as well as paint water waves, flames, smoke, and garments as they get affected by the speed of wind.{{sfn, Isabella Nardi, 2007, pp=295–296 He paints all types of scenes, ranging from dharma, artha and kama. A painter observes, then remembers, repeating this process till his memory has all the details he needs to paint, states ''Silparatna''. According to ''Sivatattva Ratnakara'', he is well versed in sketching, astute with measurements, skilled in outlining (''hastalekha''), competent with colors, and ready to diligently mix and combine colors to create his ''chitra''. The painter is a creative person, with an inner sense of ''rasa'' (aesthetics).{{sfn, Isabella Nardi, 2007, pp=295–296

The viewer

The painter should consider the diversity of viewers, states the Indian tradition of ''chitra''. The experts and critics with much experience with paintings study the lines, shading and aesthetics, the uninitiated visitors and children enjoy the vibrancy of colors, while women tend to be attracted to the ornamentation of form and the emotions. A successful painter tends to captivate a variety of minds. A painter should remember that the visual and aesthetic impact of a painting triggers different responses in different audiences.{{sfn, Isabella Nardi, 2007, pp=292–295

The ''Silparatna'' – a Sanskrit text on the arts, states that the painting should reflect its intended place and purpose. A theme suitable for a palace or gateway is different from that in a temple or the walls of a home. Scenes of wars, misery, death and suffering are not suitable paintings within homes, but these can be important in a ''chitrasala'' (museum with paintings). Auspicious paintings with beautiful colors such as those that cheer and enliven a room are better for homes, states ''Silparatna''.{{sfn, Isabella Nardi, 2007, pp=294–295

Practice

According to the art historian Percy Brown, the painting tradition in India is ancient and the persuasive evidence are the oldest known murals at the Jogimara caves.{{sfn, Percy Brown, 1918, pp=16–18 The mention of ''chitra'' and related terms in the pre-Buddhist Vedic era texts, the ''chitra'' tradition is much older. It is very likely, states Brown, the pre-Buddhist structures had paintings in them. However, the primary building material in ancient India was wood, the colors were organic materials and natural pigments, which when combined with the tropical weather in India would naturally cause the painting to fade, damage and degrade over the centuries.{{sfn, Percy Brown, 1918, pp=16–18 It is not surprising, therefore, that sample paintings and historic evidence for ''chitra'' practice are unusual. The few notable surviving examples of ''chitra'' are found hidden in caves, where they would be naturally preserved a bit better, longer and would be somewhat protected from the destructive effects of wind, dust, water and biological processes.{{sfn, Percy Brown, 1918, pp=16–18{{sfn, Isabella Nardi, 2007b

Some notable, major surviving examples of historic paintings include:
*Murals at Jogimara cave (eight panels of murals, with a Brahmi inscription, 2nd or 1st century BCE, Hindu), oldest known ceiling paintings in India in remote Ramgarh hills of northern Chhattisgarh, below on wall of this cave is a Brahmi inscription in Magadhi language about a girl named Devadasi and a boy named Devadina (either they were lovers and wrote a love-graffiti per one translation, or they were partners who together converted natural caves here into a theatre with painted walls per another translation){{sfn, Upinder Singh, 2008, p=50{{sfn, T. Bloch, 1906
*Mural at Sitabhinji Group of Rock Shelters (''c.'' 400 CE Ravanachhaya mural with an inscription, near a Shiva temple in remote Odisha, a non-religious painting), the oldest surviving example of a tempera painting in eastern states of India

*Murals at Ajanta caves (Jataka tales, Buddhist), 5th-century CE, Maharashtra
*Murals at Badami Cave Temples (Hindu), 6th-century CE, Karnataka (secular paintings along with one of the earliest known painting of a Hindu legend about Shiva and Parvati inside a Vaishnava cave)
*Murals at Bagh caves (Hallisalasya dance, Buddhist or Hindu), Madhya Pradesh
*Murals at Ellora caves (Flying vidyadharas, Jain), Maharashtra
*Frescoes at Sittanavasal cave (Nature scenes likely representing places of Tirthankara sermons, Jain), Tamil Nadu
*Frescoes at Thirunadhikkara cave temple (Flowers and a woman, likely a scene of puja offering to Ganesha, another of Vishnu, Hindu), Travancore region, Kerala-Tamil Nadu
*Paintings at the Brihadisvara temple (Dancer, Hindu), Tamil Nadu{{sfn, P. S. Sriraman, 2011
*Manuscript paintings (numerous states such as Gujarat, Kashmir, Kerala, Odisha, Assam; also Nepal, Tibet; Buddhist, Jain, Hindu){{sfn, Jagannatha P Das, 2007{{sfn, G. E. Marrison, 1969
*Vijayanagara temples (Hindu), Karnataka{{sfn, C. Sivaramamurti, 1968
*Chidambaram temple (Hindu), Tamil Nadu{{sfn, C. Sivaramamurti, 1968
*Chitrachavadi (Hindu, a choultry–mandapa near Madurai with Ramayana frescoes)Narasingampatti - Chitrachavadi
17th Century paintings, The British Library
*Pahari paintings (Hindu), Himachal Pradesh and nearby regions
*Rajput paintings (Hindu),{{sfn, H. Goetz, 1949 Rajasthan
*Deccan paintings (Hindu, Jain)
*Kerala paintings (Hindu)
*Telangana paintings (Hindu)
*Mughal paintings (Indo-Islamic)

Contemporary culture

{{expand section, date=August 2021
*Kalamkari (Hindu){{sfn, Paola von Wyss-Giacosa, 2018, pp=34–41
*Pattas (Jain, Hindu){{sfn, Helle Bundgaard, 2013{{sfn, Ku, 2014{{sfn, Ponte, 2015

See also

*Rasa (aesthetics)
*Classical Indian music
* Classical Indian dance

Notes

{{reflist, group=note

References

{{reflist

Bibiliogaphy

{{refbegin, 2
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*{{cite book, editor1=Shigeo Aoki, editor2=Yoko Taniguchi, editor3=Stephen Rickerby, author=Yoshiko Shimadzu, title=Conservation and Painting Techniques of Wall Paintings on the Ancient Silk Road, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8VIjEAAAQBAJ , year=2021, publisher=Springer Nature, isbn=978-981-334-161-6
* {{cite journal , last=Shimizu , first=Tadashi , title=Some Aspects of Mediaeval Indian Painting in the Visnudharmottarapurana , journal=Journal of Indian and Buddhist Studies (Indogaku Bukkyogaku Kenkyu) , publisher=Japanese Association of Indian and Buddhist Studies , volume=15 , issue=1 , year=1966 , issn=1884-0051 , doi=10.4259/ibk.15.426 , pages=426–422, doi-access=free
*{{cite book, author=Victor Mair, editor=Zongqi Cai, title=Xie He's "Six Laws" of Painting and Their Indian Parallels (Chapter 3 in Chinese Aesthetics by Editor: Zongqi Cai), url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aalYEmp6rLYC , date= 2004, publisher=University of Hawaii Press , isbn=978-0-8248-2791-5
*{{cite book, title= Sanskrit English Dictionary (Updated), author=Monier Monier Williams, publisher=Harvard University Press (Original published in 1899 by Oxford University Press), year=2007, url= https://www.sanskrit-lexicon.uni-koeln.de/scans/csl-apidev/servepdf.php?dict=MW&page=396
* {{cite journal , author= Paola von Wyss-Giacosa, title=Myth and Cloth from India: The Kalamkari Collection in the Ethnographic Museum of the University of Zurich , journal=Narrative Culture , publisher=Wayne State University Press , volume=5 , issue=1 , year=2018 , page=34 , doi=10.13110/narrcult.5.1.0034
*{{cite book, author=Kapila Vatsyayan, title=Dance In Indian Painting, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=58fUibaZdGYC, year=2014, publisher=Abhinav Publications, isbn=978-81-7017-153-9
{{refend

Painting
Buddhist art
Hindu art
Jain art