The ancient treatise on sculpture, the "Silpashastra" tells us a story that captures quintessence of the art.
There once lived a devout king called Vajra. One day he requested sage Markandeya to teach him the art of iconography. The sage asked him a few questions before handling him the first lump of metal. "Do you know how to paint?" asked the sage. The king did not, but requested that he be taught if that was a pre-requisite to learning sculpture. "But for that you need to know how to dance," insisted the sage. To learn dancing, in turn the king was required to have a rudimentary knowledge of instrumental music, which needed a foundation in vocal music. So the king had to begin with the octaves to be able to pour his sensibilities into any other material and make a form out of it.Little wonder then, that the beauty of Indian bronzes lies in their efficient capturing of all these artistic forms within the figures created.
Related Links:
01. Indian Art and Craft : The Living Age - 1
02. Indian Art and Craft : The painting history of India - 2
03. Indian Art and Craft : India the home of Painting - 3
04. Indian Art and Craft : Ajanta Paintings - 4
05. Indian Art and Craft : Floor Designs and Madhubani Paintings - 5
06. Indian Art and Craft : Art of body painting - 6
07. Indian Art and Craft : Shekhavati - India's Open Air Art Gallery - 7
08. Indian Art and Craft : Contemporary Painting - 8
09. Indian Art and Craft : Crafts Traditions- 9
10. Indian Art and Craft : Metal Work - 10
11. Indian Art and Craft : Metal Work and Engraving - 11
No comments:
Post a Comment