Near-Eastern Painting - Warli - The Painting of the Tribes

Warli - The Concept & History

Warli Paintings belong to the largest Hindu tribe in India called the Warli or Varli tribes, tracing back to the Neolithic Period, between 2500 3000 BC. They are found in the Thane, Nasik, & Dhule district of Maharashtra, extending up to the Valsad district of Gujarat, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, and Daman & Diu. The word 'Warli' comes from 'Warla,' meaning a piece of land or field. Since, their tribal language, a mix of Sanskrit, Marathi, and Gujarati, does not have written words, Warli Paintings were the only means of transmitting their tradition. These tribes have their own customs and beliefs, which they show through Warli Paintings.

The Details

Warli Painting is a simple style of painting, consisting of profound things. It is a ritual artwork, measuring 8 by 6 meters, done inside a hut. The painting is done in white, over earthen backgrounds. Occasionally, red and yellow dots are used. The white color is obtained by grounding rice in water to get white paste. The background walls are made red with the help of a mixture consisting of branches, mud, and cow dung. A bamboo stick chewed at the end is used as a brush.

Earlier there used to be no straight lines in the painting, though nowadays, artists have started incorporating them. A series of dots and crooked lines form a straight line. The trademarks of Warli Painting are circles, triangles, and squares. Circle represents the sun and the moon, triangles represent the mountains & the pointed trees, and square represents the sacred enclosure or a piece of land.

The themes of Warli Paintings are repetitive, mostly revolving around marriage, celebration, birth, harvest, and activities, such as hunting, dancing, and sowing. Though, initially, the graphics consisted of the flora and fauna, nowadays bicycles and transistors are also included. The paintings were done on the walls of huts. As their popularity increased, paper also became a medium of the art.

The Artists

Initially, tribal women would paint on special occasions only. In 1970s, Maharashtrian artist Jivya Soma Masche (born 1934) started to paint on an everyday basis. His talent was noticed nationally and then internationally, which prompted other men to start with this artwork.

The Artworks

The most preferred theme of Warli Painting was marriage. The paintings were considered sacred, without which the marriage would not take place. Other significant images were that of the Tree of Life and Tarpa Dance. Indian Paintings were always outstanding, owing to their superior creative and imaginative skills. The cracked walls of the villages of Warli are primarily decorated with these paintings, even today.

Annette Labedzki received her BFA at the Emily Carr College of Art and Design in Vancouver, B.C. Canada. She has more than 25 years experience. She is the founder and developer of an online art gallery featuring original art from all over the world. Please visit the website at http://www.Labedzki-Art.com It is a great site for art collectors to buy original art. Artists can join for free and their image upload is unlimited.

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