Tanjore Painting: The Gilded Art of Tamil Nadu

Beautiful Tanjore paintings are unique from other paintings for their artistic mastery. They were created on wooden boards which are locally known as Palagai Padam, which means “paintings done on a wooden plank”. These Tanjore paintings are the legacy of the art of Tanjore and the pride of Tamilnadu's art history.

The beautiful Tanjore painting of Lalitha Devi Source: Tarangarts

To the Tamilians the word Thanjavur will literally take them on a historical tour down memory lane. Thanjavur also known as Tanjore, is pretty famous worldwide for the Brihadeshwara temple. This temple is noted for its architecture. Architecture and all forms of art flourished during the period of the great Cholas. But this Tanjore painting originated under the rule of Marathas in the seventeenth century.

Raju was the community that chiefly practiced Tanjore painting. They are also known as Jinigara or Chitragara, who were the migrated people from Andhra Pradesh to Tamilnadu during the fall of the Vijayanagara empire. These artisans were Telugu-speaking people who later settled in Tanjore and Madurai. Nayakas were the rulers of that city at that time, from whom the Tanjore paintings drew their inspiration.

In the 17th century, there lived a great lover of paintings who was Maharaja Serfoji II. He was the reason behind the available antique Tanjore paintings. He took a lead and painted the deities and also the portraits of Maratha rulers and courtiers that were displayed in the Maratha palace and other buildings.

It might be so questioning about the appraisal of Tanjore painting. It is not like any other painting that involves paints and canvas. It involves gold and silver foil for rich embellishments. Traditionally, the base would be the wood from the teak or jackfruit tree. But it is replaced by plywood by the modern Tanjore artists. Using the tamarind seeds a special gum is prepared that is used to cover the wooden piece with a cloth. Gesso is a paste, a mixture of chalk powder and gum. Once the base is dried it will be applied on the cloth. This surface is smoothened and then the artists work on it.

Layers of gesso paste were applied to give an embossed three-dimensional look. This embossment was decorated with gold foil in a thin layer and the extras would be removed. Tanjore painting is known for the usage of materials along with paintings. Along with the gold foil, the painting is enhanced with semi-precious stones, glass beads, and other attractive materials. The final touch would be the coloring which is done using natural and vegetable colors. Once it is done and dried, the painting is framed for protection.

Tanjore paintings depict the Indian mythological deities, ethics, and religious texts. Most commonly the paintings of Lord Vishnu, Krishna, and goddess Lakshmi can be seen in the Tanjore art style. It can be widely seen in many shops, especially jewelry outlets. Very rare Tanjore paintings do the figures of other elements like animals, trees, and so on. Additionally, one can notice the incorporation of numerous style influences in these works like Tamil, Telugu, Maratha, and Deccani, and also from Europe, they adapted the art of shading to create depth than to comply with European lighting and perspective conventions.

Tanjore painting is not only a painting to see and enjoy. It is also a symbol of dedication and devotion. One can buy it out of spirituality or create it out of love and creative dedication. Most of the time, it is bought for gifting purposes which satisfies three things: a useful gift and a rich gift, which eventually becomes the best gift. Of course, an undeniable fact is that today's Tanjore paintings are quite not authentic as they were in those days as the natural and old things were replaced with chemical and available products. Yet, the painting is still in use. Even today Tanjore painting in blouse work has become the trend.