Indian painting

The art of painting goes back to the prehistoric times. Many styles and schools exist in India, but the two most famous ones cover the art of miniatures and that of Budhhists Thangka.

Miniatures

The first known Indian miniatures are that of Budhhists (they represented essentially the life of Buddha) and Jains. When Mughals invaded India and brought with them a different style from Persia. Hindu and Muslim painters influence each other. In addition, engravings brought from the west by Jesuit missionaries bring other elements (perspective). Nowadays, this flourishing art, gave birth to the production of beautiful miniatures, especially in Rajasthan,made mostly on paper. Bengal,(not to be confused with Bangladesh!) And Calcutta dominates the production of contemporary art painting.

Les thangka

Intimately linked to the Tibetan Budhhists culture, the art of thangkas cover the entire Himalayas.  From a simple sheet of paper that we roll, to immense canvases of several metres unrolled once a year along the walls of the great monasteries, all formats exist. The motifs painted illustrate the divinity of Buddhism or symbolic representations and serve as most often a support of meditation. The coded motifs, designed first with crayons, illuminated then with bright colours. The schools where the production of Thangka is mainly carried out are based in Nepal. Some independent artists work in Ladakh.