Institute of Mural Painting is an institute established by

Guruvayur Devaswom Board Guruvayur Devaswom Board is a Statutory and Independent body created for the governing and management of 12 temples in Kerala assigned to it. With the passing of Madras Regulation Act in the year 1817, temples were brought under the control of E ...

in 1989 to give training in mural painting, especially in the Kerala style of mural painting, in the traditional

Gurukula A or ( sa, गुरुकुल, gurukul) is a type of education system in ancient India with ('students' or 'disciples') living near or with the guru, in the same house. The guru-shishya tradition is a sacred one in Hinduism and possibly ...

system. Guruvayur Devaswom Board is the statutory body which governs and manages a group pf 12 temples including the Sri Krishna Temple at

Guruvayur Guruvayur () is a municipal temple town in Thrissur District, of Kerala State in India. It is a suburban town of Thrissur city, located from Thrissur towards the north-west. It houses the Guruvayur Shri Krishna Temple. It is located at ...

. This is the only institute of its kind in India. The institute offers a five-year National Diploma Course in mural painting. The trainees get instructions in Fine Arts for the first two years and specialized training in

Kerala mural painting Kerala mural paintings are the frescos depicting Hindu mythology in Kerala. Ancient temples and palaces in Kerala, India, display an abounding tradition of mural paintings mostly dating back between the 9th to 12th centuries CE when this form of ...

in the remaining three years. At the end of the second and fifth years, there are public examinations conducted by the Commissioner for Government Examinations,

Government of Kerala Government of Kerala is the Subnational administrative division, subnational government of the Indian state of Kerala. The government is led by a chief minister, who selects all the other ministers. The chief minister and their most senior mini ...

. The topics examined include Drawing, Design, Painting and History of Arts & Aesthetics, and Materials & Methods. Each year ten new students are admitted based on an aptitude test and an interview and the admitted students are given scholarships, free accommodation and mess facilities.

History

Guruvayur Sri Krishna Temple suffered a fire accident on 30 November 1970 and the fire damaged the ''

sanctum sanctorum The Latin phrase ''sanctum sanctorum'' is a translation of the Hebrew term ''קֹדֶשׁ הַקֳּדָשִׁים'' (Qṓḏeš HaQŏḏāšîm), literally meaning Holy of Holies, which generally refers in Latin texts to the holiest place of th ...

'' of the temple. The walls of the ''sanctum sanctorum'' had been adorning historic mural painting and these paintings were also severely damaged in the fire. as part of the renovation work, the temple management wanted to restore these mural paintings to their original glory. There were only a few experts to take up the challenge and they did a commendable job of restoring the mural paintings by the time the renovation was completed. After the completion of the restoration work, these few experts in mural painting and the temple management authorities deliberated on establishing a centre for giving training in this art. The result was the establishment of the Institute of Mural Painting in 1989. Mammiyur Krishnankutty Nair, who was among the few experts involved in the restoration work, was appointed as the first Principal of the institute. After his death, M. K. Sreenivasan succeeded him. K. U. Krishnakumar is the current Principal and Chief Instructor of the Institute.

References

External link

Official web page of the Institute
* *To view images of mural paintings created by students and faculty of Guruvayur Devaswom Institute of Mural Painting, visit
D'source Design Gallery on Guruvayur Mural Paintings
{{Kerala Fine Arts Colleges Murals Painting Murals in India Arts of Kerala Guruvayur