Context

Noted Madhubani artist Remant Kumar Mishra known as Bihar’s “mask man”, despatched masks with hand-painted Madhubani motifs all over India during the ongoing CoVID-19 pandemic.

About

Madhubani Paintings

• It is practiced in the Mithila region of Bihar and Nepal; it is called Mithila or Madhubani art.
• These are characterized by complex geometrical patterns.
• The themes of these paintings are festivals, religious rituals, etc.
• Some of the initial references to the Madhubani painting can be found in the Hindu epic Ramayana.
• The colors used in Madhubani paintings are usually derived from plants and other natural sources.
  • These colors are often bright and pigments like lampblack and ochre are used to create black and brown respectively.
• Instead of contemporary brushes, objects like twigs, matchsticks, and even fingers are used to create the paintings.
• Madhubani paintings are categorized into five different styles, such as Tantrik, Kohbar, Bharni, Godna, Katchni.
• The paintings are largely made using powdered rice, colors derived from turmeric, pollen, pigments, indigo, various flowers, sandalwood, and leaves of various plants and trees, etc. Also, many natural sources are combined and are processed to obtain the desired colors.
• If the artists come across empty spaces even after completing the painting, they usually fill up those empty spaces with the motifs of flowers, animals, birds, and geometrical patterns. A double line is usually drawn as the border.
  
  
  
  
• Eminent Artists: Sita Devi, Jagdamba Devi, Ganga Devi, Mahasundari Devi, Karpuri Devi, Mahalaxmi and Dulari.