Madhubani Painting

History

Madhubani painting also known as Madhubani art and Mithila painting, is a folk painting of Mithila, which is made in the region of Nepal and Bihar of Mithila. Madhubani is a district near the border of India and Nepal in Bihar. It is said that this city was also during the Ramayana.

Madhubani painting started from the era of Ramayana. Janak was the king of Mithila. Janaka’s daughter Sita was being married to Rama and in order to showcase arts and culture of Mithila, he ordered the public that everyone should make paintings on the walls and courtyards of their houses.
Madhubani painting is a main folk painting in Mithilanchal, (Bihar, India). Initially, these paintings were made like rangoli on the courtyards and walls of the house. Then slowly they came down on clothes, walls and papers. Madhubani paintings are of two types. One is a mural painting which is made on the walls of the house (also called the wall mural in Maithili) and the other aripan, which is made in the courtyard of the house.

Tools and colors

These paintings are made with matchsticks, brushes, fingers and bamboo pens. Traditionally, a special nib is used to draw lines with black ink in Madhubani art work. A pencil or black marker pen can be used to draw the outline (it’s important that the pen should be water resistant).

Bright colors are used, such as dark red, green, blue and black. For bright colors, flowers of different colors and their leaves are broken and ground. They are then mixed with gum and milk of the acacia tree. Only natural colors are used for example Peepal bark is used for red color and tamarind is used for yellow color. Light colors such as such as yellow, pink and lemon colors are also used in paintings. The special thing is that these colors are also made at home with things like turmeric, banana leaves and cow dung.
Paper or cloth is used as a base. No special paper is needed. A handmade sheet or any thick white sheet may be used. Make sure you start painting on the rough side of the sheet. Smooth and shiny surfaces make the colors slip.

Painting Procedure

Step-1

Start with sketching the border. Border can be from ½ inch to 2 inch wide depending upon the size of canvas. The border is an important aspect of the Madhubani painting and it makes the painting look complete. Continuous geometrical designs or nature-inspired motifs can be used.
step-2
Conceptualize the layout of the painting. Start with the main character and fill the remaining space later. The remaining space should be related to the main character, for example if you are painting a marriage ceremony, fill the balance space with related motif based on the local culture.
step-3
Fill the balance space with repeated patterns.
step-4
While filling the colors, first decide the background color and then choose the foreground colors. When background color creates contrast with the foreground colors, it makes the painting more appealing.
step-5
Infuse bright colors in the foreground. Background can have a single color.
step-6
Use a good frame.

Market

The Ford Foundation also had a long association with Madhubani paintings. Now many international organizations are sending Madhubani paintings to the international market. Last year when PM Modi was on a tour of Germany, during a meeting with the Mayor of Hanover Steven Shostock, he gifted Shostock a Madhubani painting.Last year when PM Modi was on a tour of Germany, during a meeting with the Mayor of Hanover Steven Shostock, he gifted Shostock a Madhubani painting. Look forward to its sale using Pepperfry, Amazon, Gallerist etc.