Kalighat paintings, since shortly after their origin in West Bengal (a lively, colorful Indian state), have been used to create awareness about the particular era’s social conditions and to encourage people to raise their voice. Since the 19th century, which is as far back as we know the Kalighat art form existed, Kalighat artists have been using their creations to tell religious stories and over time their objective grew to help bring about social reforms.
Kalighat paintings have always had a distinct uniqueness that captures the viewers interest and draws a lot of attention. They are famous for being bold and attractive, and at times even satirical, with a technique that seems so simple that it stands out. They may not have the opulence and intricacy of some other art forms of India, but just for the way the artist would capture a subject and portray it through art, a Kalighat paintings can be spotted easily even when crowded by other paintings. Most Kalighat artists are believed to have not just mastered the expert brush strokes and contours we see, but also a keen observation of life.
The story began in Kalighat
Kalighat art is simply named after the place it originated. Kalighat is a small town in West Bengal believed to be the home of Goddess Kali. Naturally then the religious Kalighat paintings tend to favor the formidable deity more than the others who were later incorporated and depicted in unique ways. Kalighat paintings became so popular that Hindu artisans from different parts of Bengal flocked to Kalighat and began working there. Art depicting the Goddess Kali were popular and the artisans wanted to capitalize on the emerging need by selling souvenirs. There was huge demand for Kalighat art so this migrations helped meet this need, and soon Kalighat paintings could be seen adorning the walls of hundreds of homes.
Though it originated in Kalighat, this art form rapidly spread across neighboring states and thereby developed techniques, colors and depictions peculiar to each state. Most Kalighat artists had pastoral origins and their drawings reflected their own insight about urban life and society of that era. For example, the art was growing during the British colonization of India, so we could see Kalighat paintings criticizing the “Babu” culture that was being adopted in the region. The paintings also reflected the rising feminism and liberal approaches, religious corruption, social dishonesty etc.
Kalighat paintings depict the political, cultural and socio-economic milieu of India, thereby giving us a clear impression about the life and work in that specific region. They portray moral principles (interestingly, these too have changed over the years to match changing values), imagery and attitudes with the objective to form perceptions. Kalighat art was not just mute paintings and carried with them strong social messages.
Popular motifs depicted were of Rani of Jhansi on horseback, a man wooing his concubine, cats with holy inscriptions on the temple as an attempt to portray wickedness, etc. As the freedom movement caught impetus, Kalighat artists began expressing their displeasure of the colonists through art showing victory of good over evil. At the same time, we can see a lot of British influence in Kalighat paintings, and art experts believe that Kalighat art had a lot of Western themes and styles. The British were so impressed by the overall literary and artistic culture in India, that they established several schools of art, one of which was the Calcutta School of Art. This school became home to several Patua painters hailing from even remote villages in Bengal.
Themes & Techniques
In addition to Western influence, it is believed that there were also Oriental elements in Kalighat paintings. The figures were yellow-skinned and had slanting, though large, eyes and beautiful figures. Jewels, decorations and the folds and drapes of garments worn by the subjects were detailed beautifully. The goddesses Annapurna, Lakshmi and Durga were also popular and over time Hanuman and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu also came to be included. Exposure to Western and Islamic art happened through the pieces brought in by the British and other traders and travellers that were shared by missionaries and the local markets. As religious themes were popular, the horses, head gears, crowns and at times even the clothes show remarkable Mughal and British influence.
As we said earlier, the aesthetic pleasure of a Kalighat painting lies in its simplicity and color play, allowing artists to easily reproduce and create them by hand. Colors from natural materials like plant and mineral extracts were used, with yellow, indigo, black and red being the most favored ones. The paint brushes too were made from wood and squirrel or goat hair. Fruit gum obtained from wood or stone apple and colloidal tin were used for ornamentation. By 1900 there was a huge shift where the combination of mass production and industrialization, were replacing hand-drawn images with block prints, lithographs, and oleographs.
The popularity and demand for Kalighat paintings began slowing down in the early 20th century. It was probably the simplicity and the easy availability of material of Kalighat art that ironically resulted in its spot in the sun being brief and transient.
However, most famous museums and art galleries in the country still preserve the original and mystical Kalighat creations. Unfortunately, the traditional artisans left their artwork unsigned, so significant information about them has vanished into oblivion. Several patua artists in West Bengal still practice the art of Kalighat today. One look at the flowing lines, the fantastic colors and the ethereal contours will definitely make you want to possess a Kalighat painting.
About the author: Sushmita Vobbilisetty is the concept creator at Chitrapata. She has a deep understanding of old masters, modern, and contemporary artworks. Sushmita is an expert in evaluating the market value and fair value of art based on heritage, availability, sell-through rate, market performance over time, secondary sales track record, and other key factors. Sushmita frequently predicts the bidding prices for day sales and evening auctions hosted by leading art houses.
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Image credit: DreamStudio AI, StableDiffusion.
