Miniature Picchwai Paintings: A Piece of a large Art Style

  •   Wed, Dec 18 2024
  •   By Miya Kennedy

December 18, 2024

When perusing through the Indian Artizan Bazar at Alva's Virasat 2024, Moodbidri, one would come across a stall that carried several carefully drawn paintings. On closer inspection one would realise they are miniature watercolor paintings on fabric, depicting various scenes from the Hindu Faith and nature. The paintings depicted various deities, animals and flowers. 

The artist is Pawan Kumawat, all the way from Badru Kasba, Jaipur, Rajasthan to Moodbidri, Karnataka, sharing his craft of Picchwai Painting. He along with his wife and daughter, Priyanka have been creating miniature Picchwai paintings and has received several accolades and recognitions. He also has a passion for carving careful details into stone, embossing and wood carving. 

He has been in this discipline for around 34 years, perfecting his craft. Even though Picchwai paintings are done in large canvases or temple walls, Kumawat sells miniature reproductions, so that it is accessible and anyone can carry around a small piece of the huge artistry that goes back to ancient times. He has attended several cultural festivals across the country, to exhibit his work and share this piece of art. 

Picchwai paintings are usually large devotional Hindu painted pictures, normally on cloth, and hung on the back of the inner sanctum of temples. They were mainly used as a tool to educate people on the temple rituals and festivities. They are mainly made to hang in Hindu temples of the Pushtimarg devotional tradition, a sect under Vaishnavism tradition of Hinduism. 

The etymology of the word ‘Picchwai’ is derived from the Sanskrit words, ‘Pichh’ meaning back and ‘wais’ meaning wall. Their history can be traced back to the 16th century, where the founder of the Pushtimarg sect, Vallabhacharya commissioned artisans to fill in the background areas behind the idol, at the Shrinathji Temple, Nathdwara. It was later spread across Gujarat and Mathura and due to its intricate style and clever detailing; it was used by theatre troupes for their productions. 

The work of reproducing the miniature artwork is long and arduous and takes at least two days for its completion. It involves carefully choosing silk fabrics, dipping the fabric into a mixture of gum and chalk, and drying it over a tin sheet. Then the artist carefully paints over the fabric and fills it in with details, like jewellery, backgrounds, and so on. The brushes used in the paintings were made from animal fur, but has now evolved along with time, by using expensive or cheap materials. 

The paintings are usually characterized by large, almond shaped eyes, broad nose and the scenes usually involve rich colors like green, red, yellow, white, black with a gold appliqué, thus bringing in a sort of opulence and realism in the artwork. It is also centered in the devotion of Lord Krishna. 

Picchwai paintings are ancient art styles and traditions that still stand the test of time. There are several artists like Pawan Kumawat that embrace and propagate such traditions by taking part in such cultural exchanges all over the country, in order to reach every nook and corner of the world.

 

 

 

 
By Miya Kennedy
Miya Kennedy is a PG journalism student of Alva's College, Moodbidri.
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