It is called the art of god. The artists depict the moods of god himself on the canvas — and the style is called Pichwai. The name means ‘backdrop’, literally. The Pichwai paintings are decorations made on a cotton cloth, which is then placed as the backdrop for the Lord Shrinathji (a form of Lord Krishna) idol, the idea being to cover the wall. Artists, out of devotion and affection towards Lord Shrinathji, decorate the backdrop with stone-coloured paintings depicting different moods, festivals and seasons around the idol.

Now with the evolution of popular art and technology, Pichwai art is becoming more relevant for art lovers in big Indian cities as well as the rest of the world.

“The evolution of Pichwai art has been gradual for the audience. With the change in mindset towards art and aesthetics, there have been changes in the art as well. And it still keeps evolving as the audience demands uniqueness. Firstly, the size of the paintings reduced from 10-12 ft to about 2-4 ft now. This is to make such paintings suitable to houses and not just temples or religious places,” says 28-year-old Bhilwara-based artist Kuldeepak Soni.

Apart from the physical size and structure of Pichwais, the subject, too, has undergone a transformation owing to audience’s changing demands. People want something other than traditional subjects such as Sharad Poornima, showcasing Lord Shrinathji with gopikas and cows around them. “We adopted some changes to the subject and modified the presentation with changes in some sequencing. In doing so, we also have to be careful not to tamper with the definition of Pichwai art. The evolution of Deccan or Hyderabadi style of Pichwai is one such refreshed version,” adds Soni, who is an expert in the Deccan style of Pichwai art.

The Kishangarh-style Pichwai paintings, difficult to come across, are popular among collectors and auction houses. Kota Bundi and Nathdwara are the other two popular styles of Pichwai. Kota Bundi is known for the richness of its colours. A good Pichwai painting takes anywhere from three to nine months to get ready. The prices, therefore, start at around ₹50,000.

Contemporary artists have made changes to the anatomy of the idol, as also other signature aspects such as curved or sharp nose, rounded or oval-shaped eyes.

Soni, who started Pichwai work at age 12, belongs to the third generation in his family of artists dedicated to the practice.

Joining him is the Ahmedabad-based 87-year-old design teacher-turned-artist RP Rajen, who is an expert in tapestry art; woven tapestries turned into wall pieces and dhurries. Charting out a new path, Rajen turned woven wall tapestries into artistic masterpieces with vibrant colours and woven paintings. A former teacher at the National Institute of Design (NID), Ahmedabad, Rajen has devoted 40 years to create art out of tapestry. “We haven’t seen similar artwork from other parts of the country, barring some examples of Kashmiri carpets. Some of the Scandinavian countries have shown similar works but it is unique for India,” says Darshini, Rajen’s daughter.

One piece of tapestry painting takes anywhere from six weeks to seven months to complete, depending on the size and complexity of the design. Accordingly, it costs anywhere from ₹75,000 to ₹5 lakh per piece.

Rajen has his fans among new home buyers, companies, and anyone having an eye for art. “This is an investment in art and we are getting good response from art lovers in places like Kolkata, Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Chennai, besides Ahmedabad,” adds Darshini.

However, uncertainty still lingers over whether these art forms are a viable career choice for youngsters. “The market is good for Pichwai. But we can’t say that the youth can entirely depend on this and make a career out of it. It requires originality, which is very difficult to attain. However, there is still hope. If the subject is different and original, there are people to welcome new artists too,” says Soni. Rajen and Darshini train about 30-35 students every year to keep the art alive. “The future is bright,” Darshini adds.

Providing a platform to sustain different forms of art in the modern era, the Ahmedabad-based Kanoria Centre for Arts (KCA) took the initiative to conduct regular exhibitions and annual events promoting painters, sculptors and weavers like Rajen.

Urmila Kanoria, Chairperson of KCA states, “We do not want people to think about money when they come to KCA, but only focus on fostering art and creativity. When I moved to Ahmedabad from Kolkata, I realised that there was hardly any art to talk about here.”

KCA’s ART17, a two-day art event, was held recently in memory of the noted modernist painter and sculptor Piraji Sagara.

“Piraji Sagara was a visionary, and motivated me to start KCA. It’s been 33 years now and we have grown along with the 200-plus artists who took up residency programmes with us. With art we will be researching on craft as well now,” says Kanoria, adding that the journey continues with new artists emerging from the next generation.

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