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Home >> Painting
in India >> Tanjore Paintings
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Thanjavur
or modern Tanjore is famous for a special style of decorating the paintings, which are
done both on glass and board. In both types, the figures and the background are richly
embellished with gold leaf and gems as ornaments. The relief work on board is achieved by
applying gesso, a mixture of gypsum or Plaster of Paris and glue. The
characteristics of the Tanjore paintings are its brilliant colour schemes, decorative
jewellery with stones and cut glasses and its larger-than-life figures. The themes are mostly mythological, with figures
of Lord Krishna in various poses and depicting various stages of his life being the most
favourite. Today people are experimenting with birds, animals, building structures and
other subjects. Though Thanjavur was not the birthplace of this art, this style of
painting developed here during the 18th century under the patronage of the Maratha rulers.
It reached its pinnacle during the rule of Sarfoji Maharaj who was a great patron of art.
As people and artists migrated to Tanjore from Mysore, Andhra, Bijapur, Maharashtra and
Gujarat, the theme and style came to be largely influenced by various schools of arts and
religion as well as the Western and Chinese techniques.
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