AJANTA PAINTING

AJANTA PAINTING

Subject: Art and Culture

Context : After Independence, the Viceroy’s House became the RashtrapatiBhavan,and efforts were made to showcase Indian art — such as the paintings in the Ajanta caves, which had emerged as a supreme example of the Indian tradition — and, thus, infuse the building with the spirit of the land.

Concept:

• Ajanta is a series of rock-cut caves in the Sahyadri ranges (Western Ghats) on Waghorariver near Aurangabad in Maharashtra.
• There are a total of 29 caves (all buddhist) of which 25 were used as Viharas or residential caves while 4 were used as Chaitya or prayer halls.

Time of Development

• The caves were developed in the period between 200 B.C. to 650 A.D.
• The Ajanta caves were inscribed by the Buddhist monks, under the patronage of the Vakataka kings – Harishena being a prominent one.
• Reference of the Ajanta caves can be found in the travel accounts of Chinese Buddhist travellers Fa Hien (during the reign of Chandragupta II; 380- 415 CE) and Hieun Tsang (during the reign of emperor Harshavardhana; 606 – 647 CE). .

Painting

• The figures in these caves were done using fresco painting.
• The outlines of the paintings were done in red colour. One of the striking features is the absence of blue colour in the paintings.
• The paintings are generally themed around Buddhism – the life of Buddha and Jataka stories.
• UNESCO Site: The caves were designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1983.