Gond Tribal Folk Painting: Tribal Folk Art of the Gond Tribe
About Gond Painting:
Gond painting is a well-known traditional art of the central Indian Gond tribal people. It is done in order to preserve and share the Gond tribal community’s culture. Folk dances, folk melodies, and Gond paintings are examples of Gond tribal art.
History and Origin of Gond Painting
The Gond tribe is one of One of the oldest tribes in India. These tribals are found in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Bihar, Maharashtra, Odisha, and Andhra Pradesh. The Gonds lived in a vast forested region known as Gondwana and they practised shifting cultivation. Gonds believe in God or “Bhagawan” and have a specific name which is “Bara Deo”. But they rarely worship Him. Instead, there are other gods and goddesses in their belief system that represent natural features like hill, river, lake, tree and animals and that is depicted in their artwork.
The history of Gond tribe goes back 1400 years, and the name Gond is understood to mean “Kond,” which means “green mountains,” and native peoples are known as Gondis because they dwell largely in Madhya Pradesh’s beautiful green highlands.
The Gonds paint their walls with vibrant depictions of local flora, fauna, animals, and gods. The artists use natural colors derived from charcoal, colored soil, plant sap, leaves, and cow dung. This mystical art form is created by putting together dots and lines. The imaginative use of the line imparts a sense of movement to the still images.
Gond Painting Raw Materials:
Paper/Canvas
Gond paintings are created using widely available materials such as handmade paper, canvas, and even chart paper.
Colors
Colors Bright colors like red, yellow, blue, and green are commonly used in Gond art. Colors come from charcoal, vibrant soils, flowers, leaf, cow dung, and other natural sources.
Gond Painting Themes & Designs
Gond painting themes and motifs are inspired by local flora and fauna, deities, and urban society. The following subjects are frequently shown in Gond paintings: –
- Peacocks and birds are depicted in photographs.
- The Mahua Tree is known as the Tree of Life. The Gond tribe uses Mahua flowers, fruits, seeds, and leaves for a variety of reasons.
Gond Painting Signature Patterns & Styles:
A pattern is a decorative motif that is repeated numerous times to fill in the blanks of an image.
To fill the images, each Gond artist employs his or her own individual pattern and style. These distinct patterns are referred to as signature patterns.
Used patterns in Gond paintings are:
- Dots
- Fine Lines
- Curved Lines
- Dashes
- Fish Scales
- Drops of Water
- Seed Shapes
- Geometrical Shapes, etc.
